Seeing
by In Living Monochrome
Summary: Sometimes you need more your than eyes in order to see what's in front of you.    -Insert Generic Disclaimer here-  Finally updated! :-D
1. Chapter 1

Feeling the warmth spread across her face, Demi let out a bright smile. She loved the feeling of the sun rays shining down on her facial features. The warm and comforting light on her face reminded her of how grateful she was that her other sense still remained in tact.

Being blind meant that Demi had to use her other senses to enjoy the beautiful bright day that was in front of her. Even though she couldn't see the bright sun shining above her, she could feel the warmth on her skin, smell the fresh scent of roses that grew in her back yard,she could hear her two sisters playing with each other.

That was enough to tell her that today was a beautiful day.

Even though Demitria Devonne Lovato was without sight, that didn't mean that she couldn't see everything that was in front of her. In fact, she saw the world in ways that no one else could. She saw true beauty in everything.

As she adjusted the dark glasses that covered her eyes, she felt the vibration of a pair of very small feet rushing towards her. Instantly she knew that her younger sister was running in her direction.

"Demi!" her little sister called out, a huge grin plastered over her cheeks as she threw her arms around her big sister's neck.

"Hey Maddie!" Demi hugged her little sister back, running a free hand through the younger girl's locks.

"I won again dems! I beat Dallas again at hop scotch! I kicked her butt!" the younger half sister triumphantly stated. Demi let out a giggle at her little sister's recent victory.

"Alright Maddie! Way to go!" She lifted her hand for the congratulatory high five from her little sister as she heard another pair of footsteps walking towards her direction. Demi could just imagine the look of defeat on her older sister's face.

"You seem to be losing your touch Dal." The blind girl called out to her sister as she felt her presence from right behind her body.

The eldest Lovato sibling just let out a breathy sigh and shook her head.

"She got lucky was all. I'll beat her one day."

"Yeah I don't think so Dallas. It's commonly known that you kinda suck at Hop Scotch. I'm starting to think I can beat you."

"Any time, any place sis." Dallas replied, plopping down on the seat next to Demi, taking a sip from her sister's iced tea.

As Demi was about to respond with another clever one liner, she turned her head to the noise of a large truck pulling up to the drive way of the house next to theirs.

"Hey Dal, when did we get new neighbors?"

Dallas looked over Demi's shoulders to see the large truck coming to a stop. She smirked at her sisters perceptiveness. Even for someone in Demi's condition, she was still very observant. Sometimes she wondered if her sister had some sort of precognitive foretelling abilities.

"The Gomez's? I think they moved in sometimes early last week."

"Yeah that;s when mom and dad paid them a visit. They also have a daughter. She's pretty scary." The youngest half sibling interjected while letting out a slight shudder. Demi just brought her brow up at Madison's recent comment. An interesting word to describe someone.

"Maddie, shush. That isn't nice." Dallas replied turning towards the youngest sister. This just brought up more question in Demi's mind as she furrowed her brow together.

"Is there something wrong with her?" Demi asked curiously tilting her head to the side. Awaiting Dallas's hesitant response. The older girl just shrugged her shoulders.

"You got me. Madison was the only one that saw her when she went up to use the bathroom."

"Well I only saw a glimpse of her when I was upstairs. But from what I saw, it looked like part of her face was all messed up. Something like you would see in a horror movie!"

Demi felt a wave sadness wash over her after she heard her younger half sister's description of the next door neighbor. Feeling trapped inside and socially "unappealing" was something she was all to familiar with. And hearing Madison's way of describing the girl made her heart go out to her next door neighbor.

"Maddie sweetie." Demi slid out of her chair, kneeling down so she could face her younger sister at eye level. "Do you know what this girl is feeling like right now?"

"Not really no." Madison replied, shaking her head in confusion, wondering where Demi was going with all of this.

"Well right now she's probably feeling very sad and alone right now. She didn't ask to look 'something out of a horror movie.' Sometimes when people look a certain way, people tend to think the worse about them. Even when it's not true."

She placed her hands on her half sibling's shoulders and rubbed them gently. "She probably needs someone to be nice to her right now and be her friend. And I know for a fact that you are a very friendly person Madison. You think you can do that for me?" Demi asked.

She was greeted by a nod from the smaller girl. "Yeah I can do that Dems."

Demi's lips smirked as she embraced her sister in a hug. The eldest sibling looked down at her two family members bonding as a proud smile reached her face. The middle child always acted wise beyond her years.

"You know that's some good advice sis. Maybe you ought to follow up on that."

Demi shrugged her shoulders, thinking back to what she had told her little sister just now.

"Maybe I will."

She use to be beautiful. She use to be on top of the world as one of Disney's most popular rising star. Always living in the limelight and always loved by millions, Selena Gomez felt like she was untouchable. Like nothing in this world could stop her momentum.

She was wrong. Now she lives her life surrounded by darkness, cutting off the outside world, too ashamed to face anyone. She couldn't face anyone in her condition anyways.

Not like this. Looking down at the scattered photos around her bed, she pics one up, taking a long glance at the smiling brown haired girl in front of her. A creature with a flawless face.

'Where did that girl go?' she found herself asking that question time after time. Looking up at the large vanity mirror in front of her, she stared at the reflection of a broken shell of what she use to be. Someone that brought joy to the world was now someone who couldn't even face the people living on her street.

Bringing her hands to the left side of her face, she ran her fingers down the deep scars that permanently disfigured her. Gritting her teeth in seething anger, she could feel the hot tears forming in her eyes. She hated what she had become. She hated what that fateful night had turned her into.

In anger, she furiously ripped the photos she had in her possessions in half. Tearing them into small pieces, she chucked the remains of her tattered memories to the ground. Slumping to the ground, she let her body curl up in a tiny ball, as she began to shake uncontrollably.

Letting out a heart breaking wail she allowed the tears that formed to roll down her cheeks. It was hopeless for her. Utterly hopeless.

After all, who could ever love someone like her?


	2. Chapter 2

Selena let out a disgruntled groan as she opened her eyes. Hearing the radio alarm clock next to her nightstand blare out some bubblegum pop music made Selena's faltering state of mind that much worse. These days she didn't even know why she bothered to set her alarm. She had nothing to wake up for anyways.

Slamming her hand against the off button, she rolled to her side. Pulling the covers over her head , she attempted to try and drift back into a deep slumber, where she could dream about times where she wasn't crippled by her own depression.

Just as she felt her body slowly drift back into that state of slumber. She could hear the foot steps of her mother Amanda Gomez, coming towards her room. Another moan escaped her lips when she heard her bedroom door open.

"Sweetie?" She heard her mom call out from the door way to her bedroom. "Maybe it's time to get up."

"Why bother? I'm just gonna go back to sleep."

Her mother let out a sad sigh as she entered her daughters room. She stroked her daughter's back in a soothing manner, wishing that she could ease the former actress's pain.

"Lena, I know this hurts right now. But in time this will pass. Things will get better. I promise you."

"You don't know that." Came the young girl's dejected response. She kept her eyes in front avoiding her mother's pitying gaze.

"Maybe you could, I dunno, take some small steps? Try going outside every now and then."

Selena recoiled from her mothers touch as she shot up from her bed. She glared at her mother as if she was staring at an escape mental patient. Her eyes were livid.

"Outside? Outside? Looking like this?" she motioned to her scarred portion of her face. A curt laugh escaped her lips. "Great idea mom! I haven't scared enough people this year. Hey maybe we can turn me into a circus attraction! Come see Selena Gomez, the girl without a face!"

Cringing at her daughter's lashing tongue and sarcasm, the young mom dropped her head in defeat. Figuring, it was pointless to try and reason with her daughter when she wasn't even in the right state of mind, she rose from the edge of her bed and quietly left her room, still hearing the young girl's berating.

"Hey where are you going? Come on , I wanna hear more about your genius plan!" Selena yelled out in frustration, her anger taking over as she continued to scream long after her mom left the hallway. As soon as she knew that her mother was gone, she lied back down on her soft mattress and proceeded to once again try to drift back to sleep.

After lying in her bed for several minutes, she stared at the window in front of her. In contrast to her gloomy mood, the sun was shining bright on her partly covered window. Despite being in her current bleak state of mind, she still vaguely remembered what it was like to enjoy a nice sunny day.

A part of her wish she could still do that. But that part was buried deep within layers of doubt, anger and self pitying. To her, it might as well be raining like cats and dogs outside. These days she couldn't even tell the difference.

Try as she might, she couldn't get her body relaxed enough to go to back to sleep. With one more frustrated grunt, she threw her bed covers over her body and dragged herself out from her bed. Yeah, she would get up and probably do something around the house.

But she wasn't going to go outside. That was for damn sure.

TV was one of the few pleasures left in Selena's life. Whenever she wasn't depressed or feeling sorry for herself, she would watch whatever was on television in order to take her mind off of whatever bull crap she was dealing with. For at least an hour or two, she could focus on someone else s problems instead of her own. It wasn't a permanent solution, but it was better than nothing.

She watched a lot of Supernatural these days. There was just something about two brothers traveling the open road, fighting demons and monster that she found appealing. She liked the idea that despite the odds stacking up against them, these two brothers managed to overcome insurmountable challenges. All they had was their job, and each other. That was all they needed. They at least had something to live for.

Something she use to have.

She liked Dean the best. Not because he was "hot" (which she would admit...he kinda was) but because, like her, he was broken inside. No amount of liquor or sex could take away the fact that he has more off written issues inside of him than a copy of the national enquirer.

Sure Sam was an abomination, and he had the whole "demon blood" thing working for him. But he wasn't twisted inside like his brother. And dammit she wanted her characters to be just a little fucked up.

As she was about to play the next episode on her DVD, her Winchester Brothers bliss was interrupted by a loud knock at her door.

"Go away" she muttered quietly to herself pressing the play button on her remote, hoping that whoever was at the door would just piss off and leave. Another knock from her door diminished any hope of that. "oh for the love of god." tossing the remote onto the couch, she got up from her seat and walked towards the door.

"Whatever you're trying to sell we don't want anything!" Selena yelled out, hoping that whoever was on her porch would get the idea and leave.

"Uhm, I'm sorry?" The mystery voice called out from the other end of the door. From what Selena could tell, it sounded like a young woman.

"I'm not trying to sell anything. I live across the street from you."

As Selena looked through the peep hole, she saw that her previous assumptions were indeed correct. A brunette that seemed to be about Selena's age was standing at her door wearing dark sunglasses and holding some sort of walking stick.

"What do you want?" came Selena's rude response. The other girl just arched her brow at the slight rudeness of her fellow neighbor.

"I uhm, noticed you moved in recently. And I just wanted to welcome you to the neighborhood..."

Selena could see that she was making her neighbor pretty uncomfortable by the way she slowly held up the basket of what looked like various baked muffins. "I brought muffins." The neighbor gave an awkward smiling, hope to at least break the ice between them with a peace offering.

She didn't have a lot of compassion these days. In fact what words did come out of her mouth were questionable to say the least. But whatever compassion she did have, it must have kicked in.

After all this person was only trying to be nice to her.

"Look." the young Hispanic began, her voice now considerably softer. "This really isn't a good time. Maybe you can come back when my parents are here?"

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to intrude...I just wanted to..."

Selena just leaned her head against the door letting another exacerbated moan. What part of come back later did this girl not get? Fixing to give whoever this was a piece of her mind, she opened the door part way, making sure her the scarred portion of her face was still concealed.

"Lady do you mind? I'm trying to watch TV here. You know, television shows? Good ole fashion mind melting entertainment?"

The brunette tilted her head in confusion.

"You know TV, boob tube, the idiot box? What are you blind?" Selena looked at the girl in question with a raised brow, wondering if she was either insane or living under a rock for the past year. The mystery girl just shifted her weight in an uncomfortable manner.

"You could say that."

Before Selena could respond, she took a closer look at the girl in front of her and noticed that she was in fact, visually impaired. Waving her left hand in front of the blind woman's face, she suddenly felt awful about how rude she was.

"Sorry...I didn't know."

"It's OK. Really." The young blind woman smiled back, looking considerably more comfortable than she was earlier.

"Uh do you think you can take these basket of baked goods from my hand? They're getting kinda heavy."

Selena saw that her neighbor's arm was getting rather shaky as she quickly took the basket of treats from her hand. Looking down at the basket, she saw an assortment of baked goods. Each one looking more delectable than the other.

"...I made the chocolate chip oatmeal muffins myself."

Selena looked up at the gift bearer and saw the small smile form on her lips.'probably prided herself in her baking abilities' she thought. Figuring, that she would return the kindness, she took a small bite from one of the muffins. The girl wasn't kidding, they were extremely palatable.

"Pretty good. Not to shabby." Selena nodded in approval, her compliment causing the other girl's grin to widen.

"Well, thank you." Selena replied, unsure of the kind gesture coming from the girl in front of her. Usually in her experience, Kind gestures mean that the other person wants something. She learned that nobody in this world did nice things for the sake of being nice. A mindset she acquired during her golden days as Disney's it girl.

But try as she might, she didn't sense any sort of selfishness from the other person. It was as if she was actually being considerate on her own accord.

That didn't make a lick of sense to her at all.

"You're welcome. I'm Demi by the way. Demi Lovato" the now named "mystery" girl kindly introduced herself, out stretching her arm once again, offering her hand to Selena.

Selena, still cautious about this 'Demi' person just stared at her. She was still confused by the whole situation. Demi was the first person that didn't gasp at her disfigured face. The first person that didn't try to make an impromptu exit in order to keep herself from staring.

Even though she knew it was because of Demi's blindness, still. It had been a while since she saw someone who wasn't horrified by her.

Demi however took the pause from Selena as a rejection of sorts as she let her arm drop to her side. Letting out a sad sigh, the blind girl looked away.

"Well...I hope you enjoy the rest of your muffins." Demi responded sadly as she began to turn away, tapping her white cane on the ground beneath her.

Seeing Demi walk away from her, with that sad look on her face made Selena feel something she hadn't felt in a long time, guilt. Guilt because her selfish action drove away this kind person. This blind girl was nice enough to come over and bring her a basket full of goodies, the least she could do is give her her name.

"Selena. My name's Selena."

That one gesture caused Demi to stop in her tracks and turn her head, and the toothy smile that faded from the girl's lips once again emerged.

"It's a pleasure to meet you Selena. Maybe I'll see you around town?" Demi asked, sounding hopeful.

Selena shrugged and shook her head. "I doubt it. I don't really leave the house that much."

"Well then I guess I'll have to pay you another visit."

As Demi turned around to walk back towards her house, turning back once more to her neighbor she gave one last wave of her hand. "See you around Selena."

A smile crept it's way up to Selena's jaw line. It wasn't a big one, but none the less, she felt a little bit of that armor she built up slowly chip away. It wasn't much but it was definitely a start for her.

And that small miniature sized portion of hope was enough for Selena.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes Dallas I'm sure." Demi replied, wondering why Dallas was making such a huge deal about the name of her next door neighbor was. It held no significant importance. It really had no significant importance to her, yet Dallas was acting as if they were talking about the queen of England.

"Selena Gomez" Dallas reiterated once more narrowing her gaze at her sister. "You mean to tell me that our next door neighbor is THE Selena Gomez?"

"I guess you could call her that..." Came Demi's slow response as she picked at her salad. Turning her head towards her sister's voice she shrugged her shoulders in a questioning manner. "Who's Selena Gomez?"

The eldest Lovato sister almost choked on her soda after hearing this question.

"Are you kidding me Demi? Who's Selena Gomez? Christ don't you ever watch television?"

Demi just arched her brow. "Are you forgetting who you're talking to Dallas?" The younger sister let out sardonically. Sometimes she wondered if Dallas actually needed to be reminded of her visually impaired status. As much as she loved her older sister, she had to admit that Dallas puts her foot in her mouth every now and then.

"Oh right, sorry about that." Dallas sheepishly responded before taking another bite from her chicken sandwich. "Well your friend, Selena, is an actress. For Disney to be exact. She had her own show and everything. Dallas paused briefly, looking down at her soda, picking at the small plastic straw.

"Or at least she use to."

"What happened" Demi asked softly, her curiosity getting the best of her.

Dallas's eyes dropped as she remembered the news reports of Selena's accident and how it changed the young Hispanic's life forever. Even though she didn't personally know Selena, she remembered all those magazine articles as well as tabloid reports that talked 24/7. The hurtful comments that were made, and the horrific rumor mill that ranged from her faking being in an accident to having it all staged, she had first hand experiences just how hurtful and cruel rumors can be. It's hard for anyone to handle let alone a girl who was only 18 years old.

"Car accident." Was Dallas's only response as she idly played with the straw in her drink. "Pretty much scarred her for life. Literally. At least that's what the news reports said."

Demi's mood literally dropped after hearing this from her sister. She could only imagine the pain and suffering Selena went through after her accident.

"That's horrible Dal..."

"Yeah well, that's not the worst of it. Disney pretty much terminated her contract after that. They called it a 'conflict of interest' but truth be told, nobody wants an 'Ugly' Disney princess. Not really financially marketable."

Demi could sense the wry tone in Dallas's voice. Her heart went out to her neighbor even more after hearing what she had lost. Even though she never experienced just what Selena had went through, Demi knew first hand just how cruel, unfair and judgmental the world could be.

She had been beaten down to her keens quite a few times herself. And if it wasn't for her family members and true friends, she probably would've just let life continue to push her down. She was grateful for the family that she had as well as the people in her life that encouraged her to go after her dreams.

"That's just so unfair. When she needed love and support the most, they just kick her while she's down? That's so wrong."

"Well Demi, you of all people know just how cruel and unfair this world can be."

Dallas motioned towards Demi's face.

Despite her inability to see, Demi knew what her sister was talking about as she subconsciously touched the edge of her glasses feeling the faded smooth scar tissue that surrounded her sightless eyes. That small patch of distorted skin constantly reminding her of what she had lost all those years ago.

"I know Dallas, I know."

Walking back from the small sandwich shop, Dallas turned her head towards her sister. She always looked out for Demi. Ever since they were little Dallas was someone that always looked over Demi's shoulder like a guardian angel. Even before that horrible night that robbed the younger sister the use of her eyes. Dallas took it upon herself to always be Demi's protector.

She'd never tell her sister this, but she always blamed herself for Demi's accident. IF she had been there for her when Demi needed her the most, maybe the younger sibling would still have her sense of sight. For that Dallas never forgave herself. .

"Just...be careful." Dallas randomly stated.

"Huh?" Demi asked, wondering what her sister was talking about now.

"With Selena...be careful with her OK? I mean you don't know what kind of person she is. These Hollywood type of people are always kind of...crazy."

Demi stopped dead in her tracks after hearing her sisters accusations on the next door neighbor.

"Weren't you just defending her a moment ago? I don't get you. I thought you were encouraging me to befriend her." The blind sister stated, crossing her arms.

"I was...I mean I am. It's just...that was before I knew who you were talking about. She comes with a lot of baggage sis. A lot of it which is pretty far fetched and most likely untrue. But none the less it's a lot to take in."

Dallas took her sisters hands in hers as she gently removed the sunglasses from Demi's face. She looked deeply into the younger girl's pale blue eyes. "Being her friend means carrying a lot of that baggage as well as being caught up in all that public Drama. And you don't deserve that Demi. Not after what we've been through."

"Dallas..." Demi whispered softly, rubbing the back of her elder sisters hands. "I know you're only looking out for me. And I love you for that. I always will. But I just can't sit back and do nothing. I know you think that this is a charity case, but I assure you it isn't."

Demi looked away sadly as she lets her hand fall to her side, her white cane hanging from her left wrist.

"I can relate to you her you know? Not being socially acceptable and what not? That feeling sucks Dal."

There was that compassion again. The one that Demi always wore on sleeve. Dallas always did worry about Demi and how she always saw the kindness in people. Sometimes she felt that her sister could be too nice. It was one of Demi's best and worst qualities.

Demi lost a lot of friends over the years. Supposed "Friends" who jumped shipped because they didn't want to be seen with a blind girl. When people started to talk and when the rumors began to build, Demi's list of companions began to dwindle.

Starting in high school and then spreading into the community, people talked. Talking about someone they knew nothing about and spreading lies about her. For a while, she was Demi's only friend. The older sister remembered the nights where Demi would cry herself to sleep after the rumor mill about her spread like wildfire across their community. Whoever said words don't hurt were dead wrong. They hurt alright. And Demi was living proof of that.

Even after all that, Demi's outlook in life hadn't changed. She still believed that there were good people out there. After after the beating she took, her faith still remained untarnished. That just made Dallas love her sister even more.

"Demi, you know that I love you right?"

Demi slowly nodded her head, still looking away from her sister. She felt Dallas's hand slide around her shoulders as she pulled her close to her, letting their foreheads touch.

"And you know, whatever you do in life, I will always support you. I just don't want to see you get hurt. You've had enough drama in your life. More than anyone should have to deal with."

A small tear rolled down Demi's eyes. She didn't think she could love her sister anymore than she did right now. Her kind and encouraging words always got her through the day.

Dallas took a lot of the verbal abuse as well. If it wasn't for Dallas being their by her side, she didn't know where she would be right now.

"I just wanna see you happy Dems." Dallas pulled Demi closer and embraced her in a very big sister like hug.

"I know Dal." Demi hugged her sister back, letting her tears roll down her face. She felt Dallas's thumb grazed over her cheeks, catching her falling tears. Placing her glasses back over her eyes, she slipped her hand into her older siblings as the walked down the side walk together.

Just before they were about to cross the street in front of them, Demi tilted her head to the side as her brow furrowed. Quickly she placed her hand over Dallas's arm, temporarily stopping them.

"What's going on? Why are we stopping?"

Before Dallas hand a chance to ask another question, a car zoomed straight pass them, almost knocking them over if they were about to walk across the street. Various grumbles and insults were hurled towards the speeding reckless driver from random street walking pedestrians.

Dallas almost jumped out of her own skin on account of how close the side of the speeding vehicle came in contact with her. She looked back to her sister, who still hand was still grasping her arm.

"Good save little sis. I didn't even see that one coming."

"I know, neither did I." Demi responded as she released her sisters arm. It took a few seconds for the joke to register with Dallas, but as soon as it kicked in, she let out a small laugh, which Demi soon joined in.

It was moments like these that Demi truly cherished. Even though there were small, she always felt that the little moments in life truly mattered. She knew that people would always come and go. But her sister would always be there by her side, taking the rest of the world on with her.


	3. Chapter 3

_A blissful feeling of euphoria coursed it's way through Selena's body. No crippling depression, no crushing feeling of despair, none of the garbage that weighed her down was currently present at this current time. Right now all Selena cared about was this very moment. This very moment, she wasn't a broken soul, she wasn't someone who had been left in the dirt and became a cruel joke from the tabloid rags. She knew this was only a dream but right now, she didn't care. She was doing what she loved, and that's all that mattered to her. Doing what she loved to do. _

_Right now, she was Selena Marie Gomez, teen icon and entertainer extraordinaire. Opening her eyes she was greeted by an entire stadium full of her fans, rising to their feet cheering her name. _

_Her smile grew as she waved to the stadium packed full of her supporters. She recognized the Venue she was playing at. Madison Square Garden, during the promotional tour of her second studio album. The feeling was intense, and she was about to take this stage by storm. _

_"Hello New York!" She shouted happily into her microphone. Her audience responded with thunderous applause as her signature song blared through the stadium speakers. _

_As she performed her song, that familiar rush and intensity came back to her. Strutting on stage and jumping with bursting energy, she had the crowd eating out of the palm of her hand. With every hook, every word being sung, her massive audience sang with her. _

_This was who Selena Gomez was. An entertainer, a performer, both beautiful and fearless. A born songstress right to the very end. _

_Taking her mark on center stage she pointed to the crowd singing her notable verse. Her fans cheered louder as she walked across the stage, her voice belting out each powerful note with gusto and energy._

_You are the thunder and I am the lightning_

_And I love the way you_

_Know who you are and to me it's exciting_

_When you know it's meant to be_

_Everything comes naturally, it comes naturally_

_When you're with me, baby_

_Everything comes naturally, it comes naturally_

_Bay-bay-baby_

_As she finished her song for the crowd, she felt the entire audience erupt in a burst of cheer. The sounds of their applause mixed with the adrenaline of performing for a pumped up audience was enough for Selena to break down in tears. At least for this one moment, she was truly happy. _

_"__Thank you. Thank you all so much. I love you all." she whispered into the mic, flashing a grin to the crowd, tears of joy falling down her face as they chanted her name. _

_"__Selena,Selena, Selena..."_

"Selena, Selena...Selena wake up." a voice stirred the former entertainer from her blissful slumber. As she struggled to open her eyes, a blurry yet familiar form stood in front of her. Brian, her young step father stood over his daughter with a dejected and disapointed scower across his features.

"Christ dad..." Selena plopped back down on her couch, feeling discouraged now that her blissful dream had been interrupted. "Why couldn't you just let me sleep?"

"You can sleep when you're dead Lena. Come on. Up and at em." Her father shook her daughter's shoulder, egging her to get off her lazy butt. The young daughter still refused to move from her current rested position, pulling a soft pillow over her head.

"Sometimes I wish I were dead."

Her father had enough of her self pitying. For too long Selena had put herself through this regiment of self torture. He tried everything from consoling her, to encouraging her, even bribing her at one point. Nothing seemed to work for the young actress.

"This has gone far enough Selena." turning towards her nightstand, the young father grabbed the half filled tumbler of water and threw it in his daughter's face.

"Hey!" Selena shot up up from the couch spitting up mouthfuls of water and wiping the remaining droplets from her face, her livid eyes turned towards her father. "What the hell was..."

"You're a young woman Selena." the young dad practically scolded, his own eyes matching the intensity in his daughters. "You're a young woman in the prime of your life. And all you're doing is letting the world pass you by! What happened to my daughter? What happened to that young woman who use to live life to it's fullest?"

"She's dead dad!" The Hispanic shouted back standing up from the sofa. She got right in her fathers face as she let out her frustrated anger. "She died the second that drunk driver turned her into...this!" she gestured wildly to her scared face.

"Well get over it then!" Brian shouted back, having enough of his daughters abuse towards him and their entire family.

"Get over it dad?" A scornful scoff left her lips as she crossed her arms over her chest. "Wow, why didn't I think of that? Gee, all better now!"

This wasn't the same girl that Brian had raised, the daughter that he held in his arms and raised to be a fearless young woman turned into a bitter and angry hurtful creature. What hurt him the most wasn't the words she shouted out though. It was her actions behind her words, more importantly, her lack of actions.

She was giving up.

"You're giving in..." he had replied quietly averting his gaze away from his daughter's hurtful eyes.

"That one promise that I expect you to keep, no matter what happens...and you're breaking it." He felt both mentally and physically exhausted with the constant battles he had to fight with his daughter. Running his fingers through his hair, he decided that he had enough of Selena's abuse for one day.

"What happened to you Lena, you can't control. We can't change what was done to us Selena. But giving up, that's entirely on you."

Selena turned away from her fathers gaze, even though she didn't show it, the words her father spoke rang in her ears. After her father exited her room, Selena rang her fingers through her hair. Feeling both the mental and physical exhaustion from the fight with her father. She knew that she probably wasn't the most favorable person on this planet to talk to. In the back of her mind she knew that he did have a point, but he never went through anything that resembled where she's at right now.

Selena came to a sudden realization. Everything that was given to her was a lie. The fame, the popularity, the "Friends" she had, all that fame was all lie. Every last bit of it was used to build her up only to knock her down.

Walking up to the stand of various memorabilia that she had collected during her time as an entertainer, she began to toss them into a large plastic garbage bag. These memories didn't belong to her anymore. They belonged to someone else. Someone who knew how to life to it's fullest.

With a large garbage bag full of memorabilia hoisted over her shoulders, she descended down the stairs, with every intention of discarding the plastic bag full of pictures, cds, movies she stared in, she didn't need them anymore. And she didn't need to be reminded of what was taken from her.

Heading downstairs she heard a pair of familiar voices chatting in her living room. One of them sounding like her step sister Sophie. The other voice she couldn't quite put her finger on.

Peering her head over the banister, she was suddenly interested in who her younger step sister was talking to.

"So you can't see? At all..." Sophie asked with general curiosity in her voice, she tilted her tiny head at the brunette in front of her, trying to take a peek at her behind those dark tinted sunglasses of hers. Demi just shook her head.

"Nope, I am blind as a bat." the older girl joked. This caused Sophie to smile as she walked closer to the Texan native.

"So if you can't see then, how do you walk around town then? Aren't you afraid of falling into a pit or something?"

Demi giggled at the young child's general curiosity. Getting up from the sofa, she kneeled down to Sophie's eye level.

"Well, sometimes you need more than your eyes to see things." Demi paused for a second, placing her finger on her chin, pretending to be in deep thought causing the other girl to giggle. "Like right now, I can smell Lilacs."

Sophie quickly nodded her head in awe at her new friends abilities. A gleeful smile spread across her face.

"Yeah, we have Lilacs in our back yard!" Sophie exclaimed happily.

Demi nodded and playfully touching the tip of Sophie's nose. "If you listen real closely, I bet you can hear that humming bird outside your window. Close your eyes and try it."

Following suit, she obeyed Demi's instructions and shut her eye lids closed. Listening intently to her temporarily sightless surroundings, she was able to hear the humming bird's beating wings outside of her window sill.

Opening her eyes, the youngster's head turned towards the large window and indeed saw a colorful humming bird hovering outside, collecting dew from their near by rose garden. Sophie eyes grew wide with astonishment as she gasped.

"Yay I did it!"The youngster clapped victoriously at her new found ability.

"Good job kiddo!" Demi cheered with the child feeling a sense of pride. Knowing that she educated one more person with what it was like to "see" with their other senses gave her a little more hope. It was just a shame more people couldn't be like Selena's step sister.

Studying her closely, she could see Demi's eyes behind her glasses. Contrary to what Sophie was told and what she believed about blind people, Demi did in fact have eyes. And they weren't murky or white at all. They were a light shade of blue.

"Selena's right. You are pretty."

Demi cheek's blushed at the younger girl's comment. "Well thank you Sophie. Your sister is very beautiful too."

"How can you tell if you can't see her?" Sophie knotted her brow in confusion, her child like innocence not comprehending what Demi was saying to her.

"Remember when I told you that you need to see more with your eyes? Well the same thing can be said about people as well. Real beauty isn't whats on the outside. But right in here."

Demi poked the girl in the middle of her chest. Sophie once again made puzzled face, staring back into her blind friend's eyes.

"My shirt?"

The blind Texan let out another laugh. There's nothing like child like innocence to bring out the very best in people. "No, your heart. Your true beauty is your heart."

"In that case, you're a very beautiful girl."

Another heart filled smile reached the blind girl's lips. "Aww, well so are you Sophie." she gently ruffled the young girls hair.

It really was a mystery to her to see how Selena ended up so bitter when she was surrounded with people who loved her. The accident must have damaged more than her skin tissue. It was far worse than what Dallas had told her. Broken skin is one thing. It was only skin deep.

A broken spirit was something else completely.

Selena honestly didn't know what to make of Demi and her little step sister bonding. It's been a while since she had seen this happy. Not even her own friends managed to make Sophie smile like that. It actually felt nice seeing her sister act happy for once.

Lord knows that she hasn't been the most cheerful person to be around with. She pretty much alienated herself from the people who cared about her. Not that she had many true "Friends" to begin with. But Demi was different.

She wasn't like those typical Hollywood "Friends" that she made in the past. She wasn't a user, and she wasn't someone who rode the coat tails of your fortune and fame to get themselves noticed. Demi was genuine.

And that's what scared Selena. Nobody was this genuine if they didn't want something in return. It's just NOT the way the world works. At least not in her experience. With her ear still in tune towards their conversation, she continued to eavesdrop on their conversation.

"So tell me what else you hear." She heard Demi's voice. There was a short pause from their conversation. Selena gathered that Sophie was once again trying to do her "Listening experiment" that Demi showed her previously.

"I hear Selena! She's on the staircase!"

Selena jumped at the sound of her name. Tumbling back against the railing, she brought her hand out to break her fall only to knock over a near by vase, sending it crashing to the ground.

"Dammit!" She hissed staring at the now shattered pot. Bending down to pick up the broken remnants, she slowly shoved them into her large plastic garbage bag. This just wasn't her day.

"Selena I thought that was you!" She turned her head towards the owner of the cheerful voice. Selena smiled seeing Sophie bounce towards her big sister while Demi was trying to catch up, holding onto Sophie's hands for guidance.

"Yeah it's me." Selena replied clumsily, a sheepish grin planted over her face as she finished cleaning up the mess she made. "Uh, Hey Demi." Selena greeted her blind neighbor in a rather friendly fashion while Demi smiled back, returning the kind gesture.

"Sophie? You think you can go into the living room for a few minutes? I need to talk to Demi."

"...ok." The young child cautiously replied, taking note of the dark tone in Selena's voice. She knew better than to get in Selena's way when she was getting ready for a verbal thrashing. Looking back at the two girls, she saw how uneasy Demi was starting to feel as she played with the left sleeve of her cardigan.

Demi could read people's voices pretty well. After all she spent a good 13 years hearing people talk and studying the pitch in their voices. Usually an irksome tone was not a good sign for her.

"S-Selena are you OK? You...you sound kind of..."

"What the hell are you doing here Demi?"

Demi was taken back by Selena's sudden rudeness. Had she really outdo her welcome already? She admit, that she could have a little bit of a meddling issue, but she didn't mean any sort of harm. She just wanted to give her neighbor a friendly hello. Was that so bad?

"I was in the neighbor hood and I guess I just wanted to say hi. Your dad let me in...I really didn't mean to bother you. I'm sorry..."

Selena softened slightly at Demi's now uncomfortable demeanor.

"Look, I get that you want to be nice to me. I do. OK? But I don't appreciate you telling my sister lies about me. I don't like it."

Demi once again tilted her head in confusion wondering what Selena was talking about.

"I..."

"You told my sister I was beautiful. You told MY sister that I was beautiful." Selena let the large plastic bag fall to the ground as she walked towards Demi, who seemed to respond by shrinking away from the fearsome girl's now threatening presence.

"Selena, it's true..."

"No it's not true. I'm not Beautiful Demi. At least not anymore. If you saw me, I mean REALLY saw what I looked like, then you wouldn't think of me as beautiful."

Demi felt her heart break even more for the young former actress. Did this girl really have that low of an opinion of herself? Did she really feel this way? It was horrible to hear about anyone else, let alone talking about yourself.

She could literally feel her mood drop with each acid filled word that Selena spoke.

"I meant what I said earlier to Sophie..."

"Do you know who I was Demi? Before...do you know what I've accomplished? I use to work for Disney. That may not mean a lot to you, but that was my entire life. I use to be part of the largest entertainment industry in the world." Selena continued her rant as she balled her hand into a fist, her body were a few mere inches from Demi's now quivering form.

"I was happy! I was doing what I love. You know how many people can say that? That they actually achieved their dream job, only to have it taken away in a blink of an eye? Do you know what that's like? It's like a joke being played on you, it's like someone dangling a prize in front of you only to have it snatched away..."

"I...I know what happened Selena..." Demi managed to squeak out timidly, almost on the verge of tears.

"What?" Selena sneered out, her eyes were now livid as she proceeded to stare a hole into Demi's face.

"I know about you and what happened. But it doesn't matter. I meant every word I said Selena. Honestly, I don't think you're ugly..."

"Stop it! Just stop it!" Selena shouted furiously causing the blind girl to flinch. She narrowed her gaze in disgust as she took a few steps back. In order to calm the raging war that's going on inside of her, she took a few deep breaths. It did very little to help.

"You don't know everything Demi. What you heard or what people told you? That's not all of it! And if you did know me, you should know that I hate being a charity case."

"Charity case? No that wasn't..." Demi tried to reason back, even in her flabbergasted state of mind, she tried her best to calm down the enraged Hispanic in front of her.

"And I HATE being lied to. Now leave!" Selena shouted, seeing the tears rolling down from the edge of Demi's glasses.

Feeling dejected, Demi turned her body away from the radiating heat that was coming from the taller girl's frame.

Trying to salvage what she could, Demi attempted to apologize towards the irate girl standing in front of her, but the only sound that came from her lips was the muffled sob that she had been keeping in. Slowly she just opened the front door and stepped outside, feeling her heart break for herself and the other teenager.

"And I don't need your pitty! Save it for someone who gives a damn!"

Demi's body flinched at the sound of the large oak door slamming behind her. She only wanted to make Selena feel better. That was the gods honest truth. She wanted to make the girl a little happier. But all she did was make her feel worse.

She failed. She failed in her mission of trying to be a friend to someone who needed it. Or at least she thought she needed it. Must have read the signals wrong. That's probably it. If she read em right, she would've seen that Selena was beyond help now.

Bringing he hand to her mouth her small stifled sobs turned into full unadulterated crying as she was a good distance from Selena's home. Wiping the tears that seem to endlessly stream down her face, she quickened the pace of her walking. Even though she felt defeated, she refused to let Selena see her like this.

On the other side of the door, Selena's trembling body leaned against the large wooden frame, her emotions still running wild.

God what the hell happened? Did she really say all those hurtful things? Did she even mean the words that were coming out of her mouth? She didn't know anymore. To her it was like watching someone else say all those horrible things and making that sweet girl, who was only trying to be her friend, break down in tears.

She had some horrible things in the past but, nothing like this. Nothing this vicious. In anger, she pound her fist against the large door letting out a loud and grief ridden scream from her throat as it echoed in the large hallways.

'God...what the hell am I doing?'


	4. Chapter 4

Dallas loved being a big sister. It was the greatest feeling in the world for her. Watching her younger sibling grow up from a cute little girl, to a beautiful sophisticated teenager was an absolute privilege for the eldest Lovato sibling. She could remember the fond memories that they use to share. Like taking Demi to her first live concert. Even though it was pretty loud and intense, she remembered holding her little sister's hand the entire time, not letting go while they jumped up and down to the loud blaring Green Day songs that blasted through the arena speakers. It was probably one of her most fondest memories she had with Demi.

Then there were moments like this that she absolutely hated. Comforting a crying teenager was something that wasn't foreign to her at this point. She had consoled her sister enough times with hugs, cups of hot chocolate and cheek kisses to know just what to do.

Even though she knew what she was doing when it came to Demi, it never got easier seeing her like this. Watching her little sister sob into her pillow was always a heart breaking to watch. And this time was no different.

After the sobbing had long since subdued, she would just lay there with Demi, neither of them saying a word to each other. Just trying to take comfort in each others presence. Lying next to her sister, she cradled her arms around Demi's tiny waist, placing a kiss on her tear stained cheek. As another sob escaped the youngest Lovato sister, Dallas ran a soothing hand down Demi's hair. Just wishing she could do something about the 18 year old's pain.

"You were right Dal..." the blind girl whispered, letting the fresh tears that formed in her eye to roll down her cheeks.

Dallas Sighed once again. Her fingers brushing against Demi's cheek, wiping the tears from her face. Sometimes she hated being right.

"I didn't want to be baby."

She had a hard time trying to focus on the television program in front of her. Usually she would be able to get lost in her current TV show, but for some reason her mind was occupied on someone else. More specifically her blind neighbor that she sent home crying just a few days ago. Selena knew that her words could hurt. She knew the effect that it had on the people around her. Her mother, her father, even her little half siblings have gotten their fair share of her acidic words.

But seeing the broken look on Demi's face struck a nerve with Selena that day. The effects her word had on Demi was just heart breaking.

Demi didn't deserve her tongue lashing. That was for certain.

Shutting off the television, she tossed the remote onto the sofa seat. A belated sigh escaped her lips as she leaned back into her couch. She felt horrible for what she said to the blind girl. No scratch that. She didn't feel horrible. She felt absolutely gutted.

Selena knew what she had to do. And if she was going to make this right, she needed to do it in person.

"What are YOU doing here?" Dallas asked, her face void of any emotions as she stared across her door way at a very intimidated looking Selena Gomez. Her arms crossing her chest. Selena tried her best to hide behind the large shades she was wearing, avoiding the piercing gaze of the older sister.

Dallas definitely had that big sister vibe going on. And it seemed to be radiating off the young woman. Selena deserved that much.

"Hi...uhm. I'm Sel..."

"I know who you are." Dallas rudely interrupted the nervous neighbor. "You're the girl that made my sister bawl her eyes out. Again, what are you doing here?"

Selena felt a cold chill ran down her spine. She knew just how defensive big sisters can be. But the vibe she was getting from Dallas right now was just down right chilly.

"I need to speak to Demi...is she home?" Selena asked timidly. She knew that she wasn't welcomed around here. And that she deserved Dallas's cold shoulder. The older sister looked back up towards Demi's room before shifting her gaze to the young Hispanic in front of her.

"She doesn't want to see you." Came Dallas's curt response, her arms still crossing her chest in a defending manner. She wasn't going to let Selena off the hook that easily.

The former actress just shifted uncomfortably in her position as she rubbed her shoulders nervously. This was going to be a lot harder than she though. Obviously the older was trying to make this difficult for her. Truth be told, she didn't blame Dallas one bit.

"I know, I'm probably the last person she wants to see right now but...I really need to see her right now. I feel awful about..."

"You know what? Spare me OK?" Dallas once again interrupted the teenager in her apology as she shook her head in disgust. "You aren't here for Demi, you're here for yourself. You're here for Demi's forgiveness so you can feel better. Well you know what? We're all fresh out of that. You want forgiveness? Go see a priest."

Just as Dallas was about to head back inside, she felt a hand grab hers. Turning back, she saw the former actress taking off her large sunglasses, her pleading eyes staring into Dallas's face.

"I'm not use to this OK? These, gestures, these random acts of kindness, this is all very new to me and...I know I shouldn't have said what I said. I was wrong. And I just wanted to tell her I'm sorry. Just tell her that for me. Please?"

Dallas's better judgment told her not to let Selena anywhere NEAR Demi. Not after that night she spent trying to console her sobbing sister. Her entire body was screaming at her to just tell Selena to piss off. But hearing the plea in her voice, and that lost look in her eyes was just painfully sad.

The more Dallas thought about it, the more she saw her sister in Selena. They had more in common than Dallas originally thought.

It could be a trick. Selena was an actress after all. It was her job to sell a lie. But Selena seemed genuine. Her feelings seemed sincere.

Maybe Selena was telling the truth. But Dallas wasn't going to just play mediator between the two. If Selena wanted Demi's forgiveness, she was gonna have to work for it.

"I think you need to tell her that."

Selena felt her body relax slightly. A small smile curled on her lips. "Thank you. So can I see her now?"

The older sister shook her head. "She's not here right now."

Selena's smile fell from her lips as she placed her hands on her hips. Now Dallas was just being mean to her. "Well where is she then?"

Selena was stunned to say the least. This was something she never expected out of Demi. Her first initial reaction when she saw the blind girl was that she seemed, pretty shy. Someone who liked to keep to herself and just minded her own business. She saw her as the girl who just sat in the corner booth of a Starbucks sipping on her green tea, while burying her nose in a book. Sort to speak.

But playing for the California Conservatory of Music? That was unexpected. Stepping into the large amphitheater, she was greeted by the thunderous sounds of a fully orchestrated orchestra. And right in the middle of the ensemble of musicians sat the girl in question, playing her violin like it was all second nature to her.

No, stunned wasn't the right word to use. She was in awe at the fact that her previous assessment about her blind neighbor had been thrown out the window. She wasn't shy at all. This was the polar opposite of shy. Demi Lovato was fearless.

Here she was thinking that Demi was the girl next door, when in fact she was playing for one of California's most prestigious musical schools. Seeing her sitting there in the middle, dressed in an elegant tight black turtle neck with a pair of black pinstripe slacks took Selena's breath away.

Demi was beautiful. Not that she ever was ugly in Selena's eyes but she was just absolutely breath taking. The added bonus of her being an accomplished violinist at the young age of 18 was just an added bonus.

A wide smile crept up on Selena's face as she heard Demi's solo. Music seemed to flow out of her body so effortlessly. As her gaze moved towards the musician's face, she noticed the sadness etched into the blind girl's facial features. Behind her dark glasses, Selena could only imagine the pain that clouded the young girl's pale eyes.

That feeling of guilt returned to Selena. Little did anyone in the audience know, she was the cause of Demi's sad demeanor. She felt absolutely gutted at this point. As soon as Demi's solo ended, she found herself giving the violist a standing occasion with the rest of the audience members. Clapping happily along with everyone else, she couldn't feel more happier for the girl on stage.

She had no idea that Demi was so talented. The girl was absolutely amazing. And she deserved her thunderous applause.

Usually after a successful afternoon performance, Demi felt herself swell up with much deserved pride. After all she just played for an entire theater full of people that just gave her a standing applause, so there was no reason for her to feel down. Yet the usual feeling of euphoria after a performance didn't come to her.

She wanted to tell herself that it wasn't because of the fight she had with Selena. In fact she told herself several times. But she'd be lying to herself if she did.

Placing her violin and bow back into it's respective case, she prepared to gather her belongings. As she slipped her coat over her shoulders and hoisted up her instrument, she heard a pair of familiar footsteps walking towards her direction.

"Demi..." she heard her name being called. Her body froze as she heard the familiar voice. She slowly turned her head towards the owner of the voice.

"S...Selena..." Demi replied, placing her arms over her chest in a protective manner. She felt herself shrink away from the taller girl, still feeling the effects from their last rendezvous. The last thing she wanted right now was more verbal abuse.

"I had no idea you could play like that. You were amazing." Selena responded honestly. That small compliment seemed to have settled Demi's nerves a bit.

"Oh, well thank you." Demi nodded, her hands idly playing with her bracelet, her voice still timid in it's response. The two girls just stood in front of each other, neither of them saying a word. From what Selena could see, Demi looked very uneasy in Selena's presence.

And from their last run in, Selena couldn't blame the blind musician.

"Hey, do you think we could maybe talk in private?" Selena requested of the blind singer. Demi skeptically nodded her head while she finished packing up her musical instrument.

Selena sat across Demi inside of the musician's dressing room. She watched as the blind violinist placed her instrument next to hair chair. That same uneasy feeling never left her. As Selena looked around the dressing room, she noticed various sets of posters that were scattered alongside her wall. Along with a rack of CD's next to a large Stereo.

She had a rather eclectic taste in music alright. They ranged from Yo Yo Ma, all the way up to Paramour, Green Day, and Linkin Park. Selena never figured Demi, a studier of classical music to be into someone like Haley Williams.

"You've got an interesting collection of CD's there, never pictured you to be into Paramour or Green Day." Selena let out a nervous laugh, trying to lighten the mood between them. Demi's gaze still not meeting Selena's.

"So is there some kind of rule saying that I can't like different types of music?"

"What? No, not at all. I just...I never pegged you for the alternative rock type is all. I mean that's great that you're into that kind of stuff." Selena look away from Demi's sightless gaze for a sec. This was a lot harder than she thought it would be. Demi wasn't really giving her much leigh way right now. She ran a hand through her curly locks and a frustrated sigh escaped her lips.

"I just wanted to apologize for what happened a couple days ago. I had a fight with my father and well, I guess I was still upset over it. And I took it out on you. I shouldn't have done that. And I'm really sorry."

Demi lowered her head for a second, her hands still playing with each other as she shifted her crossed leg to the other side. "Then why did you do it?" She asked quietly.

"I dunno, I guess I was being stupid." Selena replied, getting up from her seat. She paced back and forth in the large dressing room. "You know you're the first person to actually NOT look at me like I'm some kind of freak? Or actually do something for me without getting something in return? I'm not use to this."

Demi stayed quite still trying to process what Selena had just told her. Even though her incident with Selena was still fresh in her mind, she couldn't help but sympathize with the young former starlet. Being taken advantage of was something that wasn't foreign to the blind musician.

"I'm sorry..." Demi whispered.

"No, don't apologize. I'm the one that should be sorry. What I did was inexcusable and, you didn't deserve it." Selena walked over to the large window and stared out at the city skylight in front of her as she let out another breathy sigh. "I understand if you're still angry at me, I just...wanted to let you know that I'm sorry." the same uncomfortable silence between them rose once again. The only noise she heard from the deafening silence was the sound of Demi's chair as she got up from her seat. And for the first time, in a long while, Selena was nervous of what Demi's response was going to be. Was she going to slap her, yell at her or curse her out?

"You up for a California Roll?" Demi asked randomly, a smirk forming across her lips.

"Uh...what?" Selena arched her brow at Demi's random question. Not sure how to respond to the brunette, or why she's even talking about Sushi in the first place.

"There's this Sushi bar a couple blocks from here, they make amazing California rolls. They go a little crazy on the Wasabi though. But if you don't mind the tongue burning sensation it leaves, it's not to bad."

Selena's signature vibrant smile was placed back on her lips feeling a huge weight being lifted off her shoulders.

Demi was certainly full of surprises. From being a practitioner of classical music to being a consumer of traditional Japanese Delicacies, Demi proved to be a jack of all trades of sorts. Something Selena always admired in people. She always felt that variety was a true spice of life.

"Why not? I haven't nearly filled my raw fish quota for the year."

As her brunette friend let out a giggle, Selena felt her cheeks blush at the harmonic sound the young musician made. For reasons that were unknown to the Latina, she felt herself swoon as their arms interlinked with each other as Demi lead the way from her dressing room. For a blind girl, she was rather perceptive.

Little by little, Selena could feel the walls she built up crumble bit by bit.


	5. Chapter 5

**Title**: Seeing  
**Pairing**: Demi/Selena,  
**Rating**: M  
**Summary**: Sometimes you need more your than eyes in order to see what's in front of you.  
**A/N**: So I finally got around to updating this story. I can't tell you guys how sorry I am for not updating soon enough. But the drama known as real life needed to be taken care of as well. You all know how that is. I'd get into detail but...then I'd have to kill you guys ;-). But again thanks for all the reviews and for all your support. Hope you guys enjoy the next installment ;-)  
**Disclaimer**: No one could possible own Demi or Selena. No one.  
**Chapter**: 5

Happiness is a funny thing. It can creep up on you when you least expect it. Just when you think that things can't get any worse, sometimes life will throw you a good day. That one good day where you can forget all the crap that is bothering you, at least for a few hours and just enjoy the simple things in life. Selena never thought that she would have that good day again. In fact she was pretty sure that god had deprived her of all her good days after her accident.

None the less she did have a good day, and another good day after that. Soon those days turned into weeks, and she found that the crippling sadness that she had been experiencing in the past had lessened. Significantly.

It was still there, she didn't think that it would ever fully disappear, but she was starting to cope with it. Or at least not let it consume her like it did in the past. Happiness is a funny thing. And she never thought that a blind girl of all people would show her that small sliver of light at the end of a very long tunnel.

Selena found herself thinking about Demi a lot these days. Even when she was doing mundane tasks like doing her laundry or watching television, Demi would randomly pop into her mind. She was certainly an alluring woman. Everything about the visually impaired musician captivated the young former actress. Her long brunette locks, the black curve hugging ensemble she usually wears, even the cute clef in her chin was on the young woman's mind.

But what really ensnared Selena's interest was the fact that Demi didn't care what Selena looked like. After all, how could she? She couldn't even see the former actress. Seeing demi hiding behind those dark tinted glasses of hers just added to her mysterious persona. Obviously she knew WHY Demi wore those glasses, but she often wondered to herself what hid behind those pair of dark lenses.

It was definitely a factor that made Demi that much more interesting and desirable. Yes, Selena would only think that to herself. She'd never say that out loud.

It scared and captivated Selena at the same time that she could have these peculiar yet almost disturbing thoughts about someone. Being attracted to someone because of their handicap was tacky to say the least. But at the same time, it made her feel more comfortable around Demi. Looking into the vanity mirror and running her fingers over those permanent scars, she feared what would happen if Demi one day could see her facial disfigurement. Would she still be Selena's friend? Would she still hang out with her if she could see what the rest of the world had seen?

Lying back down on her bed, she closed her eyes, trying to somehow push out the unhappy thoughts that have recently been plaguing her mind.

* * *

Selena subconsciously kept placing her hand over her cheek. Her constant paranoia kept telling her that people were staring at her scars. She practically took every precaution from placing her oversized sunglasses over face, to having her hoodie covering up her face. Public places still made her feel uneasy, and it didn't help that a few eyes were already looking towards her directions.

Tilting her head, Demi could hear a lot of the snide remarks that were being said about the scarred girl sitting in front of her. It made her sad knowing how superficial and judgmental people could be, being on the receiving end of a few gossip topics herself. She could pictures those invasive eyes just lingering on the girl in front of her.

"We could go somewhere else if you want." Demi suggested, feeling the uneasy shifting from Selena's side of the table. Selena smiled at the blind girl's considerate nature. For a girl who was dealt a pretty unfair disadvantage in life, she was quite compassionate towards other people.

"No, It's OK. I have to deal with this sooner or later. Might as well get it over with." Selena replied, keeping her hands above the side of her face, trying to shield herself from the public. She hated how helpless she was feeling at the moment.

She was use to being the center of attention,. Being in the public spotlight for a good portion of her life, having the world's attention on her came second nature to the former actress. But now, she would give anything to be ignored. A part of her even envied the visually impaired girl in front of her. At least she didn't have to see the pity laced faces in front of her.

"You would think that people would've seen someone with a hideous scar before." Selena wryly joked, letting out a bitter laugh as her hand once again covered her face.

"Selena...stop." Demi whispered, trying to coax her friend into a relaxing manner. "I keep telling you, you're not hideous."

"Yeah well, you have the added advantage of not having to see me. So consider yourself lucky." Selena's curt response made Demi bow her head in sadness. She mentally slapped herself for saying something so careless. "Sorry...that was stupid"

The fact that she was so quick to call herself "ugly" made Demi a little sad. She could feel the girl's pain coming off from the other side of the table. It was absolutely gut wrenching to say the least.

"Selena?...would it be too much to ask if I could...see you?" Demi timidly asked, afraid of how Selena would react. When it came to dealing with her new friend, Demi had to tread carefully in front of the insecure teenager.

It took a few seconds before Selena understood what Demi was saying, and as she predicted, Selena's walls once again re-emerged. "I dunno Demi...I don't think..." She heard about how blind people used their sense of touch in order to "see" something in front of them. How they used the texture of the person's face to get a general idea of what that person looked like, it fascinated her to see that Demi was so in tuned to the world around her despite her obstacle.

Stopping in the middle of her protest, she looked up to meet Demi's sad gaze.

"It's ok Selena...I understand."

She felt bad about rejecting the other girl's advances. She really did. From what she could see out of Demi, there was no real malice or any sort of judgment coming from her. She honestly was just curious to know what Selena looked like. Deciding to throw caution in the wind, she figured that there would be no real harm in letting Demi touch her face. After all, it wouldn't be like she could actually "see" her. It would be a general assumption, at best.

"Sure." Selena replied.

A smile formed on the blind girl's lips as she brought her hand closer to her friend's cheek. Selena felt her breath hitch when Demi's fingers came in contact with her face. Closing her eyes, she could feel the teenager's lingering fingers grace her cheek bones. Her normal subconscious walls seem to naturally come down around her fellow Texas native. She could feel the blush flourish over her cheeks as her fingers play over the scarred portion of her face.

"Like I said...pretty bad huh?" Selena once again resorted to her self pitying humor as her defense mechanism kicked in. She was expecting to see Demi laugh at that little joke, but instead she was greeted with a rather pleasant surprise.

That warm smile came back to Demi's face as her hands gingerly cupped Selena's cheek as she whispered, "I think your beautiful."

This wasn't a date. This wasn't a date at all. Selena tried to tell herself that over and over again as she walked Demi back to her front door. She had been on plenty of dates in the past and while this certainly FELT like a date to her, she tried to convince herself that it wasn't. No this was just two friends enjoying each others company and hanging around each other for the sake of friendship. That was all right?

Despite the fact that Selena kept stealing glances from her shorter friend, almost as if she WAS on a date with her, she mentally some how managed to convince herself that she wasn't on a date at all. As she chivalrously held onto Demi's hand, she walked her up to her front door, gently guiding her blind friend towards the front of her house.

"Thank you for walking me to door." Demi responded graciously, her fingers lingering with Selena's for a brief second before finally letting go. Selena let out a gracious smile at the small gesture, her face once again flushing a light shade of pink.

"Well thank you for spending time with me. It was pretty...bearable." Selena teased causing her fellow teenage friend to giggle.

"Wow bearable? That's it? Boy you sure know how to show a girl a good time." Demi playfully shoved Selena's arm with her free hand.

"You know I was joking."

As Demi nodded, she felt Selena taking her hand in hers, once again giving it a reassuring squeeze. She could feel the warm comforting feeling within her spread throughout her body as she felt her friend's hand traveling up her shoulders. An unknown shudder worked it's way up through Demi's spine as she felt Selena's body moved closer towards her own.

Selena didn't know what she was doing herself. To be honest, she was just acting on impulse. In her mind she envisioned just giving Demi a friendly hug, but suddenly she felt her body act on impulse.

Demi felt her breath hitch as Selena's hands were now down towards her elbows. A few more inches closer, she would've felt her hands being placed right on her hips. It excited as well as frightened these new sensations that she was now feeling throughout her entire body.

It suddenly hit her that Selena's face was getting closer towards her face. TO her surprise, she wasn't moving away at all. In fact she quite welcomed this new feeling that she was getting.

"Selena...what..." Demi stuttered, her lips inches away from her friend's.

The taller girl froze. Her actions came to a grinding halt as she realized what she was doing. The frozen demeanor on Demi's body, and the look of shock ridden all over her face, she saw just how inexperienced demi truly was.

"Sorry...I didn't mean to..." Selena stopped midway in her statement as she looked away, feeling rather ashamed with herself.

"I should probably go..."

"Selena wait!" Demi called out as she heard the rapid foot steps of her friend traveling away from her vicinity, leaving her in a dumbfounded state of mind.

In Demi's mind, Selena was the perfect teenage girl. The girl who was part of the popular crowd, the girl that was friends with everyone, the one teenager that every wished they could be and and hang around with, Selena was untouchable in Demi's eyes.

During the time that they spent hanging out with each other, Demi grew a much deeper appreciation for the Hispanic teenager. She learned that they shared quite a lot in common. Both of them were from Texas, both of them started in the entertainment industry at a young age, even though Demi was more music oriented and Selena wanted to hone her acting skills, they both shared a strong passion for the arts. The sudden thought of her friend, brightened her formerly sour mood as of recent.

She truly did enjoy Selena's company. More so than she would like to admit. With the past events that happened earlier that day as well as this new feeling that has been brewing inside of her, a new sense of self discovery began to formulate.

Lying on her bed, she felt her hands creeping across her abdomen, gently rubbing her concave stomach. She could feel her breath and her breathing becoming more heavier as she arched her back. Hearing Selena voice in her mind, she could feel her hand venture down towards the elastic band of the jeans she was wearing.

Ever since she started to hang out with her neighbor, she felt herself becoming more aware of her body, and more aware of the ever growing sexuality that entered her subconscious. Like all 18 year old with raging hormones, she had needs. Needs that can only be fulfilled BY a certain someone. A certain 18 year old girl, that she would never admit her feelings to.

As she closed her eyes she could hear Selena's voice calling her name. Her own panting becoming quicker and more vivid as her friend's voice became louder.

A soft moan escaped the blind girl's lips as she envisioned her friend's strong hands roaming over her body, enveloping her in that strong embrace of hers. The passion and the secure feeling she felt made Selena Gomez even that much more desirable to Demi.

"Selena..." she whispered as her hand went further down south, her moan became louder as she felt her fingers gently massaging her inner thigh. In her mind thought, Selena was always the one that would put a cap over her pulsating needs. Her gasp became louder as she felt her hand stroke harder against the throbbing feeling between her legs.

She could feel her self reaching towards her climax. Images of Selena and her in wild throws of passion began to bombard her mind as her own heated body became enthralled in a sense of radiating heat. With one last cry of her name, Demi felt her body tense up as she came. Her scarred friend deeply burned in the active conscience of her mind as she felt herself releasing a very powerful orgasm.

As her heavy panting died down, she rolled over to her side feeling the dull ache between her legs subsiding. A sudden realization came to Demi's mind as she brought her arms closer to her chest. Selena, a girl, someone who could have anyone that she wanted, would never feel this way about Demi. At least not in the way that she desperately wanted her to.

A stifled sob escaped the blind girl;s lips as she brought her pillow in closer to her face, hopefully trying to subside the soft wail that escaped her lips. She never thought about it till now but despite being surrounded by her family, a family that loved and cared for her deeply, she never had any sort of intimate relationship. Not even a first kiss.

Knowing what she had missed out on, she had a sudden craving for that need to be fulfilled. But Selena wouldn't want her. After all who would want to spend the rest of their days taking care of a blind person their entire lives? As independent as Demi tried to be, for herself and her family, a part of her always knew that she would always need some sort of assistance. Even doing the most simple tasks for her required some help from a second party. She would always be that "Squeaky wheel." that people would whisper about when she left the room.

The simple thought that she was doomed to spend the rest of her life alone depressed her to wit ends. Bringing her knees closer to her chest she let out another sob, letting the tears flow from her eyes to soak her pillow case that she held to her face. As she cried herself to sleep, she only had on person in her mind.


	6. Chapter 6

Demi was always thinking in terms of musical notations. Everything was a form of music to her. How people walked, how they talked, the tones in their voices, music was everywhere she looked. And that was what gave her the desire to pursue a musical career. People didn't know this, not even her own family, but she was also a song writer. Sometimes when she would be by herself, she would idly write lyrics down on her note pad along with a few melodic chords she was playing on her instrument.

But she didn't have a typical note pad stuffed with lyrics like most musicians. No, her note book was in her head, full of musical inspiration.

_Wanna scream out_

_No more hiding_

_Don't be afraid of what's inside_

_Gonna tell ya, you'll be alright_

"Alright...I...got nothing." Demi's mind drew a blank as she leaned her back against the sofa cushion. As hard as she tried to concentrate on a new song, she couldn't. Her hands idly strummed her acoustic guitar as she replayed the events of last night over in head. She still couldn't believe what had happened. Selena kissed her. She almost kissed her. If Demi didn't stupidly open her mouth that is. Over and over again, she re-imagined the scenario in her head, wondering how it would have played it if she would've just kept her mouth shut.

It was rather ironic that the one thing that the one person she was trying to write about was the same thing that seemed to be blunting her attention.

What the hell did all of this mean? Was she gay? Did this make her a lesbian, a bi-sexual? The idea of being with a girl didn't even enter her mind before she met Selena. But there was just this huge...connection she was feeling. Like she was rooted to the scarred girl that briefly held her in her arms.

The numerous thoughts continued to pile up as she continue to play random notes on her instrument. With each note and chord she played, more thoughts of Selena entered her subconscious.

The taste from her strawberry lip gloss still lingered on her mind every time she ran her tongue across her lips. The fresh scent of lilacs that wafted across her neighbors garden and into her own always brought her friend to her mind. And each time, a goofy smile would always spread to her lips. She didn't know what exactly started this feeling, but what was going on inside of her was undeniable.

And her feelings for Selena were getting stronger by the minute.

Ugh, she couldn't take it any more! These thoughts were driving her crazy. Placing her guitar next to her chair, she decided that it was time for a little fresh air. Perhaps a small walk around the block my clear her cluttered mind. Just as she was about to grab her cane, the ringing from her door bell halted her task.

"Who is it?" Demi called out.

"Demi? Is that you?"

Demi's heart skipped at beat at the sound of the very familiar voice coming from the other end, her hand resting on the knob as she slowly turned the handle. Opening the door, she was greeted by a very nervous looking Selena.

At that moment, Selena was glad that Demi was visually handicapped. Her nervousness took over her senses as she looked away from her blind friend. The unspoken incident still lingered between them as she just stared into Demi's tinted shades. As her eyes traveled to her lips, she could feel her flustering stomach starting to rise at the sight of Demi's pout red lips.

Gosh darn it. Everything about her was just so...irresistible. She wanted to kiss them right then and there.

"Hey Selena." Demi tried to sound as cheery as she could, hoping that her squeaky voice didn't give away her nervousness. Her figiting feet did very little to help as she was bombarded with that familiar scent of lilacs again. That intoxicating aroma was enough to make Demi's senses whirl in a frenzy.

Selena herself seemed unable to bring her voice into fruition, as the speech that she had planned seemed to have evaporated from her brain.

"Uh Hey." Selena tried to muster up a decent and believable smile as her hands fidgeted with the strings of her navy blue hoodie. "What was that you were playing?" Selena inquired, motioning her head to the acoustic guitar.

"Oh it's nothing. Just a little something I'm working on." Demi waved her hand wistfully hoping that Selena didn't catch the red blush that started to spread to her face.

"Well it sounds really pretty. Is it about anything?" Selena inquired, generally interested in the lyrical song that Demi was working on. She was just met with another dismissing wave.

"Not really. Just about...stuff." Demi tried to hide the wavering in her voice as her sightless eyes shifted behind her glasses, "You wanna come in?" she asked stepping aside.

Selena graciously accepted her friend's invitation. Stepping into her home, she realized that this had been the first time she had truly been inside of Demi's house. There was certainly a nice homely feature to it. Decorated with a light shade of pastel white, she felt at ease with the calming atmosphere. A smile came to her face when her eyes drifted to what appeared to be a family photo with Demi, Dallas and her parents.

"I like your family photo." Selena commented on the large framed portrait. She felt a goofy grin tug at her lips as she saw of what appeared to be a 15 year old Demi Lovato, the dark tinted glasses even on her face at that time which looked about a few sizes too big. Even back then, Demi seemed just way to adorable.

"Thank you." Demi replied, the thought of her supportive family brought joy to her heart every time. Walking towards the direction of Selena's voice, she outstretched her arm as her fingers grazed the glass covering of the large family portrait. It was of her favorite items in the entire house.

"Here." Demi took Selena's fingers in her own hands and gently guided them over each respective faces of her family members in the photo. Selena was surprised at how well she could memorize the entire photograph given her handicapped state.

"That's my big sister Dallas, my Half sister Madison." As soon as their fingers traced over her mother's face, Demi's heart swelled up with pride at the thought of her mother. The same woman that held Demi's hand whenever she needed it, the same woman that was her should to cry on when things in life seemed to weigh her down, and the same woman who never gave up on her child and encouraged her daughter to reach for her goals. No mater how the odds were stacked against her.

"And that's my mom." Demi replied, a sense of pride laced in her voice. Selena peered over her friend's shoulder as her eyes viewed the statuesque blonde woman in the photograph.

"Wow, she's beautiful. I can see where you got your good looks from."

"Aww flattery will get you everywhere." Demi teased with a wink, her face blushing with Selena's compliment. "DO you want something to drink? I was just heading into the kitchen."

"Yeah sure." Selena followed Demi into her large kitchen. Her eyes were glue to her friend as she watched how Demi managed to effortlessly navigate her way through her home. She was impressed by how Demi used her hands to feel her way around the kitchen, knowing that her sense of touch was one of her greatest assets in her daily activities, she wondered about other skills that the girl had acquired over the years.

Her fingers accidentally grazed Demi's fingers as she graciously accepted the glass of sweetened iced tea from her friend. As soon as their fingers touched, Selena body froze. The contact with her skin sent Selena's senses in a frenzy. Looking deep into Demi's tinted lenses, she could imagine the complicated thoughts that were going through her mind.

There was definitely an attraction between them. Selena could feel it coming a mile away. She felt her body automatically react to the contact of Demi's hand as she placed the glass back on the counter top, her hand still linked with the musician's.

Before she knew it she felt her lips crashing against Demi's. To her surprise, the blind girl didn't pull away. Quite the contrary in fact, she was kissing Selena back to the best of her abilities.

She was obviously inexperienced. Selena thought to herself as her lips massaged her friends. Or her...girlfriend, maybe, possibly, she didn't know at this point. She's not sure anymore after this complication. But as inexperienced as Demi was, kissing her felt rather...nice. Almost comforting. She felt real affection from the girl in front of her as she relaxed her hands on the shorter girl's hips. A muffled moan came from Demi's lips as Selena's hands slowly crept up her side.

Demi's senses were sent into a tale spin when Selena had kissed her. After daydreaming about Selena kissing her and holding her in her arms, she never imagined that this would be happening to her, nor did she ever dream that it would be this intense. It was beyond anything she ever dreamed about. Selena's hands felt so strong against her body, she could melt into her fortified embrace, feeling safer than she did in her entire life.

She was so sure that Selena only saw her in a friendship capacity that she mentally discarded any possibility of a romantic relationship with the girl. But alas, here she was in a heated make out session.

"Selena..." Demi panted between her breath, between the intense strawberry flavored kisses that were being placed on her lips. "I...we..."

"I know..." Selena muttered, running her hand through Demi's silken locks as she smiled against her lips.

But when she felt Selena move her hand towards her glasses, her defense mechanism kicked in.

"No!" Demi shouted as she swatted Selena's hand away from her face, knocking her glasses from the Latina girl's hand.

Breaking the heated kiss, Selena gasped in shock as she stared at the now frail looking girl desperately covering her eyes with her arms.

"Demi!" Selena shouted, her mind trying to come up with ways to soothe the frantic blind girl in front of her.

"My glasses...where are they? I...I need my glasses!" Demi cried out, her hands still covering her eyes as she frantically backed herself into a corner. Selena raised her hands up, trying to calm her down.

"Demi it's ok! I see them." Selena did her best to try and reassure her friend. Spotting the glasses underneath the kitchen table, she quickly reached them, and slid them back onto Demi's face. She sighed in relief as Demi's body started to relax.

"Are you ok?" Selena asked with genuine concern.

Demi nodded slowly, her breathing returning to normal as she placed her hand over her now slow beating heart. "Yes...thank you." As Selena took Demi by her arms, she walked with her towards the couch.

"Come on, why don't you sit down." Demi nodded at the suggestion as she closed her eyes.

* * *

From the corner of Selena's eyes, she saw what Demi was trying to hide from behind those glasses of hers. The heart breaking sight of the scars around Demi's eyes made Selena's insides twist. Knowing what kind of pain her friend must have been in when she lost the use of her eyes, made Selena's heart wrench.

"Demi I told you, you don't have to keep apologizing. It's ok. Really."

"I know it's just..." Demi tried to regain her composure as she attempted to apologize for the millionth time. Only stopping mid sentence after Selena kept reminding her that an apology wasn't necessary.

"Demi, I get it. Really it's OK, you don't have to explain it to me."

She knew why Demi kept those glasses on her at all times. Having the comfort of a security shield over your visual short comings was something that Selena was all to familiar with. Even with her significant improvement and outlook on her life, she still wouldn't walk out the door without some sort of cap or a long hoodie to try and cover up her face in fear of people staring at her facial blemish. She was in the same boat as Demi in that aspect.

"It's just that, if you're still freaked out and you want to leave, I'll be OK with that."

"Really?" Selena teased, raising her brow, smirked etched onto her mouth.

"Well no I won't." Demi admitted with a shake of her head. "I'll be totally crushed. But I'll get it. Kinda, maybe. OK I won't get it either and I'll probably end up on a peanut butter and fudge ice cream bender."

Selena shared a laughed with her friend, once again feeling that sense of calmness that just seemed to follow her and Demi around. She loved the fact that she could be herself with her. She didn't have to impress anyone or flash a fake smile for a thousand paparazzi camera's. It was a nice little reminder that fame and fortune isn't everything.

Then there was that elephant in the room. The whole 'so how bout that spontaneous make out session that happened no less than twenty minutes ago.' elephant. What could they possibly say about that?

"You know, were going to have to talk about...that. Right?" Demi timidly reminded Selena as she picked at her long sleeve turtleneck. Her fingers nervously touching the soft fabric. And just like that, their security bubble has been popped as they were dropped back to the plains of reality.

"Yeah...sucks doesn't it?"

Demi nodded for a second before her head popped up. "Wait...what sucks? Did the kiss suck? Was I...not good?" she asked, a hurt expression plastered over her face.

Selena was quick to reassure her that it wasn't the case. "No! Not at all! It was fine I liked it. It was...nice."

Demi's demeanor seemed to relax at Selena's reassurance. Her body seemed to loosen up on her own accord as a relaxing smile came to her face as she was complimented on her kissing skills.

"It's just that. I'm not gay Demi." Selena said, almost as if she was trying to convince herself.

"Oh, well that's good, neither am I." Demi's nervous voice hung in the air, mimicking Selena's attempt to convince herself that she wasn't sexually confused. And she wasn't. Right? She wasn't gay at all. She never even thought about girls until she met Selena. Selena, with her strong arms holding her, making her feel all safe and secure, her melodic voice that effortlessly pulls Demi into a dream like trance, and how her hands seem to make her skin burst every time she touches her.

Damn it! She was doing it again. Thinking about something inappropriate when they were trying to have a serious discussion.

"So then, what does all this mean?" Selena asked again. Unsure of herself as she returned her gaze towards Demi, who responded with a mere shrug and a small voice.

"I don't know. I'm not to sure myself. Maybe we should take it slow? See where it goes?" Demi suggested, with a feeling of hope brewing inside of her. Hoping that maybe Selena felt the same way she did. The unreadable silence between them was starting to weigh on her.

"S-Selena?" Demi spoke again. Her chest tightened with every second passing.

"I'd like that Demi." came Selena's simple response. It was a simple yet true response coming from a willing friend. Someone willing to take the journey with her. And just like that, Demi's heart was once again soaring.

* * *

"Honey, I'm home." Demi heard her mother call out from the living room, with her acoustic guitar still on her laps, she idly continued to play a few chords as she heard her mom close the front door. The conversation she had with Selena, still fresh in her mind as she placed her instrument back in it's respective stand.

"I'm in the living room!" she called out to her mom. Hearing the familiar foot step of her mother' black designer boots, she wondered how her mother would react to her seeing a girl, let alone having a new friend in her life. Her mom had the reputation around the household and the neighborhood as an over protective 'mama bear' when it came to her children.

Especially when it came to Demi. She remembered the countless times Dianna spent waking up at the crack of dawn taking Demi to music school when she was in her early teens as well as the many nights she would console her child after the mental and physical abuse that her biological father put her entire family through.

She was the strongest woman that Demi had the pleasure of knowing. Next to her sister. Someone that she truly looked up to. But being overprotective was one of Dianna's best and worse traits. A lot of friendships that came and went, that weren't necessarily horrible were lost because of her mother's overprotective nature that scared a lot of people away.

Demi felt a smile tug at her lips as a familiar motherly arm wrapped around her shoulders – and feeling her lips pressed against her temple.

"There's my little artist. Hard at work as usual." Her mother stated proudly at her daughter's dedication to her music. "Working on something spectacular I presume."

"Hey mom." Demi greeted her mother, snuggling into her embrace, her familiar designer perfume filling the air. "I dunno maybe. It's still a work in progress."

"Well I'm sure it's going to be amazing. You're too talented to make it anything but ordinary." Her mom encouraged, giving a reassuring smile and a motherly kiss on her daughter's cheek before breaking the embrace.

Demi's mom always knew the right words to say to give their daughter the courage they needed. It was a skill that Dianna prided herself with since the day her children were born. Always encouraging them when they needed it, always telling them to never give up, she vowed to herself that she would never treat her children the same way her mother had raised her. She was past that phase in her life, and now her devotion was to the family she loved more than anything else.

"You'll never guess who I ran into today. Tony Anderson!" Demi's mom called from the kitchen, grabbing a bottle of water from the fridge.

"Mister Anderson? My 6th grade music teacher?" The young 18 year old called back,

"Yup, he said he was at your last show. You reminded him of a young Yo-Yo Ma."

"Yo-Yo Ma?" Demi snorted with laughter as she picked up her acoustic guitar once again, preparing to work on her song. "He's one of the best cellists in modern age mom. I can only DREAM of being as good as he is."

"Nonsense Demetria."

Demi felt her mother sit close to her as she felt the weight shift on the plush sofa she was resting on.

"I keep telling you, there is nothing that you can't achieve in life. Look at all that you've accomplished now. How many blind 18 year olds can say they play for California Conservatory of Music? Hell how many people in general can say that?"

"I get it mom. Thanks." Demi wistfully replied, leaning her head against her mother's shoulder. A warm feeling of love motherly love coursed through her body as she felt her mom's fingers gently stroke her dark brunette locks. Their mother/daughter bonding moment however was broken by a very familiar shrill voice.

"Mom! A little help! Here!" A struggling Dallas shouted out as she desperately tried to balance two large grocery bags in her arms attempting to walk through the front door.

"Sorry!" Dianna quickly got up and rushed to her eldest daughter's aid, grabbing one of the bags from Dallas's arm. The familiar yet jovial bicker between her mother and her older sister brought a sense of comfort to the young musician as she was quickly reminded of the love that they shared with each other. And her mother loved her. Unconditionally right?

So she shouldn't care that Demi was developing strange feelings for her new friend. A new friend that she had yet to tell her mother about.

That sense of fear returned to her as she tapped her fingers against the hollow body of her acoustic guitar. What if her mom did care? What if her mother did care that her daughter had these thoughts about another girl? Would their bond be strong enough for her mom to be accepting of this new discovery?

She couldn't risk it. Not yet. She still had trouble introducing new friends to her mom. She'd take it slow first. Just say that she met a friend. That's it. A girl can have her friends right? Friends who aren't _Girlfriends_. 'Here goes nothing' She thought to herself as she took the familiar steps into the family kitchen, hearing Dallas and her mom having some debated discussion on what's better. The organic yogurt that they bought, or the yo plait that was still in their fridge.

"So I uhm. I invited a friend to dinner this Friday." Demi opted for the direct approach, feeling it would be much better than something subtle. Regret seeped through her body as the riveting yogurt debate of 2011 came to a screeching halt. "I hope that's OK..."

"Really?...do I know this friend?" Dianna cautiously turned towards her blind daughter and narrowed her eyes slightly.

"You mean the ones you didn't scare off mom?" Dallas interjected.

"Can it Dal." came their mother's stern warning. The eldest blonde daughter just raised her hands up in the air, leaning back on the seat she was sitting on.

"So who's this friend of yours."

"You've met her before. The neighbor from across the street, Selena?" Demi timidly reminded her mom of the visit they paid when welcoming the new neighbor to their street. From the tone of her voice, Demi was stating to think that this was a mistake.

"I never actually met her. Only her parents but...You're friends with HER? Those crazy Hollywood type of girl?"

Demi inwardly winced at the label that her mother gave her friend.

"Hmm." Was all Dianna had to say about the situation. Everyone in the room knew what she was thinking though. She pretty much made up her mind about this girl without even meeting her. Despite the fact that she loved her mother dearly, she could be pretty judgmental at times.

"Mom she's a nice girl." Dallas did her best to reassure her mother. "She's been hanging out with Demi for a while now. And honestly...she's an OK person."

Demi flashed a toothy grin for her sister. The fact that Dallas was starting to take to Selena and positively vouch for her, gave Demi a little hope. Hope that her mother would maybe take that into consideration.

Dianna just tapped her manicured nails against their granite table top. Demi cold just imagine the unreadable expression on her mother's face as she was processing this new information.

"Well I guess, we'll have to set another plate for this Friday." Her mother stated going back to her tasking of putting their groceries in their respective places.

Demi sighed in relief at her mother's surprisingly relaxed reaction. Little did the youngest daughter know about Dianna's cautious thoughts that were brewing in that over protective "mother hen" mindset of hers right now.

Little did Demi know, her mother sometimes watches her from afar when she is practicing in her room. Tonight was no exception as Dianna was watching her daughter playing her cello like it was second nature from the corner of her hallway. She smiled proudly at the way her daughter's hands seemed to effortlessly strum her bow across the wooden instrument. Yohan, Bach, Mozart, it was almost as if the great musicians of the past were embedded into her DNA.

Those hands, those talented hands that she held when she was a little girl all the way to when she bought her her first violin, and took her to her first piano lesson turned into instruments that played magical music for the entire world to enjoy. That simple thought made Dianna proud to call Demi her daughter.

Her daughter was precious to her. All her children were. But she made it her duty to pay close attention to Demi after her accident. An accident caused by her biological father. Images of that horrid night still plagued her mind whenever she closed her eyes. The sound of her daughter tearful scream, the vision of blood profusely pouring down her face with sharp jagged shards of glass sticking out of her eye sockets was as she begged her mom to stop the unimaginable pain was enough to make her heart break all over again.

It was that moment that she silently promised her daughter to always protect her from whatever evils that were out there in the world. Some people may call it an unrealistic goal, she called it motherly love.

This was her family. The one thing in her life that meant more to her than anything in the world, and she would be damned if some shallow Hollywood brat was going to corrupt HER daughter.


	7. Chapter 7

AN: So not sure if you guys are aware of this, but as of recent I've been under some heat lately. Mostly due to the fact I support those who decide to write gay and lesbian fanfics within their fandoms. Recently I've been called things like a "gay whore window licking lesbian" who has "heroically taken it upon yourself to somehow defend fucked up, twisted yaoi fetishes of stupid girls.". Lol, that is too funny. That really is. Well you know who you are. I just want to say thank you. Thank you for reminding me why I support what I support and thank you for giving me more reason to fight the "good fight" per say. You've given me reason to do what I do. And I'd rather die for something, than to live for nothing.

PS: I am now on twitter. So for those of you who want to follow me, feel free to do so :). My tweet name is my user name. So give me a mention and I will retweet ya ;-)

Enjoy the chapter folks

The ride that morning to the conservatory with her mother was a quiet one, sitting in the passenger seat of her mom's Audi she was lulled peacefully by the serenading sounds of the music that came from their car speakers. Hearing the Sarah Brightman song that filled her mother's car, Demi relaxed into the plush leather seat, letting the melodic voice sweep her into a musical bliss.

Gently waving her head to the soft music, she found herself fantasizing about what the world would be like if life was just one big musical production number. She'd often dream about a stage opening up, and the city streets would be filled with the soft sounds of a church choir as she head to practice, where sunny days were filled with the gentle hits from the Beatles Abby Road, and rainy days would fill the sky with the thunderous majestic notes of Ludwig Von Beethoven.

She sometimes imagined that the honking cars from the adjacent lane were actually a quintet of woodwind musicians accompanying her while she takes her morning drive her mother. If she concentrated hard enough, she could hear the crescendos of the on coming traffic almost as if it was an entire orchestra engulfing her in a cocoon of eclectic notes.

Yes, even Demi could find musical beauty within the world's chaotic atmosphere. And in that beauty, she found peace.

She wondered if anyone else thought that way. Maybe her mother sang a rock opera solo when she drove to work after dropping her off at the large musical conservatory. For all she know, she did, singing a head bobbing rocking beat as she gestured wildly with her hands to a medley from Repo, The Genetic Opera.

Hey, maybe her mom was the "legal assassin." that people feared. She certainly had an overpowering persona. That was for sure. Both lovable yet scary at the same time, who else than her own mother could fill the role of one Nathan Wallace? Come to think of it, her life was like a the Genetic Rock Opera. Including her very own Amber Sweet played by her older sister. Save for the addiction to cosmetic surgery.

That simple thought brought a giggle to her lips. But if her life was an musical production number, who would she be? What role would she play? Would she be like to be the Shiloh Wallace of the family. Trying to find out who she is in life, by cutting through all the lies and propaganda the world seems to just shove in her face, always feeling overprotected by her own mother?

Or maybe she was **Christine Daaé** from Phantom Of The Opera. Circa Andrew Lloyd Webber. The girl mature beyond her age and the love interest of the mysterious "phantom" played by one Selena Gomez.. The thought Christine ending up with Phantom made Demi's smile brighten. As much as she loved reading the book and hearing the legendary musical, she often wondered what would it be like if Christine ended up with the Phantom instead of Raoul in the end.

Truth be told, she found more beauty in the flawed perfections of a phantom. That love seemed more relatable and romantic than the handsome hero getting the girl.

"So what's Selena like?" Diana asked, interrupting her daughter from her thoughts. Demi just blinked her eyes as she was pulled from her musical daydream.

"She's nice mom. She's sweet, kind...kind of keeps to herself, but she's not a bad person." Demi wanted to add "amazing kisser" to the list. Yet knowing her mom, she'd probably freak out at the fact that her little girl was making out with another woman. She wasn't sure how she was going to add that to their dinner conversation. Considering that her mom always talked about her growing up with a nice "boy" it would definitely wipe out that image of her having a typical family.

Then again Demi was never "typical." she fantasized about her life being a Rock Opera sometimes. How typical was that?

"Yeah well. You know those Hollywood type of people. Shallow and manipulative, I wouldn't out it past her to be like that. They're always looking out for their own. No sense of morality what so ever. They would step on their own mother's back just to get what they want. The world is a ugly place Demetria."

Demi sighed as she shook her head. Her mother always used this tone whenever she was in this rant mode of hers. Always talking about how the world can be a dark place, filled with people who are just plain evil. She's head it a thousand times before. She cursed herself for forgetting her iPod. At least she could have drowned out her mother's negativity and overall overbearing.

She loved her mom. She did. With all her heart she truly loved her mother. She couldn't have asked for a better family. Even her step father treated her as if she was her own daughter. But sometimes, her family could be a little overbearing. Especially her mother.

God what she wouldn't give to just have a little breathing room from her. I mean she was already 18 years old and she felt like she was back in kindergarten whenever her mom talked like this. Sometimes she just wanted to tell her mom to stop smothering her for one second so she can have a moment for herself. Would that be too much to ask?

"But speaking famous people. You know those who didn't let the success go to the heads, guess who I spoke to recently."

"Who?" Demi asked, already feeling drained from this morning's conversation.

"Joseph Jonas. He asked about you." Her mother replied, as if she was expecting her daughter to burst into glee. Demi waited a few seconds for her mom to continue before shrugging her shoulders.

"OK...and?"

"Ok and?" her mother replied, the mocking shocked tone dripping her voice as she temporarily turned to her daughter. "Demi, Joe Jonas asked about you. You know, Joe Jonas of the Jonas Brothers? Gosh I haven't seen him in ages. He's back home with his brothers for a short break..."

Demi's sightless eyes rolled behind her glasses as she continued to hear her mom overpraise the middle Jonas brother. How her mom got the idea that she was into Joe Jonas in the first place was beyond her. He wasn't a BAD guy per say and surely he had some nice qualities. But he was a total egomaniac. Every topic was about him and how awesome it was being world famous. The long drawn out stories that he kept talking about him traveling, giving sold out concerts and all the random girls he met was enough to make her wish she was also deaf. And the only question he asked her was "Did you hear about our latest single."

"So I was thinking of inviting him as well. What do you think?"

"What? No...Why would you do that?" Demi repeated her mother's last statement. The thought of having Joe Jonas in her home again made her skin crawl with unwanted nerves.

"He's a nice boy Demitria and he likes you. Besides didn't you two have a nice time on your last date with him?"

"Sure. If you consider hearing about him and his 'awesome band for four hours, it was a ball."

Demi's voice was dripping with sarcasm. She was never that depressed of a person, but after one date with Joseph Jonas, Demi almost wish that she was also deaf. That way she wouldn't have to hear another boring JoBro tale. There was only so much she could take from the egotistical middle Jonas child.

"Demi now you're just being melodramatic. Besides, I think you two would go well together. After all, you both like music, you both take your artistic careers very seriously. You two already have a lot in common."

Demi could feel the banana nut oatmeal she had for breakfast rising up from her stomach at the suggestion that Joe Jonas actually liked her. She would rather swallow rusty nails than to endure another painful date with him.

She never understood why her mom feel for the Jonas family charm. Maybe it was his sparkling good looks or the way he presents himself with that confident swagger whenever he walks into the room. She kept hearing from her sister and friends on how "Hot" Joe Jonas was. But Demi could careless about Joe's 'Looks'. She had no use for them anyways.

Selena on the other hand was a different story. Thinking about running her fingers across Selena's bumpy side of her face gave Demi that sense of comfort that seemed to swarm through her body whenever she thought of the girl. Every line on Selena's face, every crevice that her fingers gazed over those scars of her was almost as if Demi was trying to find another piece of the puzzle that made up Selena Gomez.

That's what she was to her. One big giant puzzle, wrapped in an enigma, encased in an a Chinese finger trap. And each bump on Selena's face was like reading into the puzzle some more, getting one more piece of information, one more line added to the story to complete the entire series.

She was getting somewhere with her. She just needed some more time.

* * *

Selena clenched her sweaty palms together as she sat in the living room of the Lovato's. To say her introduction to Demi's family was interesting was an understatement to say the least. Demi answered the door and greeted Selena with her endearing smile did a lot to calm the Hispanic girl's nerves at first. But when the rest of her family came to greet her, not even the shorter girl's vibrant grin could simmer the whirlwind of emotions that brewed in the pit of Selena's stomach.

She could feel their eyes on her facial disfigurement. Demi's father's minor flinch wasn't too bad. She expected a reaction at this point. But when Diana greeted her with her husband, she stared at Selena's face for a good three seconds. To anyone normal person, three seconds was nothing. Barely enough time to raise your hand for a decent hand shake. But to Selena, those three seconds felt like an eternity.

Now sitting between Demi and her little sister Madison, Selena had the spot light shining on her once more. She didn't feel this nervous since the Grammy awards She probably wouldn't have held together as well as she did if it wasn't for Demi gently placing her hand on her elbow from behind the couch.

Selena felt her nerves calming down significantly at this gentle gesture. Demi was indeed an amazing girl.

"So, it's finally nice to meet you. Demi's told me so much about you, I almost feel like we've known you for years." Demi's father commented, deciding to attempt to break the ice with the scared actress.

"Dad stop." Demi bashfully replied, gently biting the bottom of her lip as her cheeks turned into a rosy blush as she tried to hide her growing smirk.

Selena just playfully elbowed the blind girl, her own smile coming back to her lips.

"Well Demi's a pretty awesome friend to have. I talk about her a lot to m family and friends as well. Taylor felt like she's been part of her entourage for a while now."

"Taylor? You mean as in Taylor Swift? The Singer Taylor Swift?" Dallas asked, a hint of envy and curiosity could be heard in her voice as she arched her brow. Selena just nodded taking a sip of the club soda in front of her.

"Cool, Taylor Swift knows who you are Demi, You're famous!" Madison exclaimed, the gleefulness laced in her voice as she bounced up and down in her seat. "You gotta get me her autograph!"

"Madison, I have to be introduced to her first." The singer replied with a giggle. Demi wasn't like any girl Selena had met before. Any new potential friend that she would have met in the past, only wanted her for her fame. Wanting to meet either Meet someone famous, or to take them to the fanciest restaurants in LA. People had no idea what it was like to be a celebrity, let alone how hard it was to actually make friends. Real friends who actually cared about you. Not the celebrity image created by some large corporation.

Another thing that attracted Selena to the visually impaired brunette.

"You have a lot of famous friends don't you?" Selena turned her head towards the rather stoic voice of Demi's mother as her smile slipped from her face. Whatever comfort that Selena was feeling at the moment evaporated at the sight of Dianna's ice cold expression.

"Uhm...I guess." Selena answered uneasily, now fidgeting and picking at the lint on her shirt, feeling the hair on the back of her neck standing up. She looked around the room, taking note of the apologetic changed expressions that lingered on each family member's face. Looking over to the 18 year old next to her, she saw Demi's head hanging in shame.

"They like to live that crazy Hollywood lifestyle right? Stay out all night, drink, do drugs, that kind of lifestyle?" Diana's accusing tone. "Kind of a rough lifestyle for an 18 year old don't you think?"

"Mom..." Demi whined, shaking her head.

"What?" Diana asked, shrugging her shoulders. "I just want to get to know your new friend Demi..."

"No, it's OK. I understand your concern." Selena replied, matching Diana's piercing gaze with her own fake Hollywood smile. A smile she would reserve for those wicked reporters that would always ask those loaded question that seemed to damn you no matter how you answer it. But if Diana wanted to play that game, Selena was more than happy to take her on. She's been in the hot seat plenty of times. And this woman wasn't any different from a Nancy Grace or a Diane Sawyer.

"Mrs. De La Garza, I can assure you with one hundred percent confidence, that I, nor my friends, or anyone that I am associated with has not nor will ever be associated with that self destructive sort of life style. I like to live up the image that I portray on a daily basis. And that is certainly not an image that I would attach my name to." Selena ended her well practiced "speech" with that famous victory smile of hers. "Would you like a urine test to make sure I'm not all high on smack Oprah?"

Listening carefully she could hear the small giggles escaping Demi's lips as she felt a congratulatory squeeze from the youngest Lovato's hand.

Dallas just gave the Hispanic teenager a wink,while even Eddie managed to nod his head in an impressive manner. It wasn't every day that someone stood up to Diana "Mama Bear" De La Garza. And Selena Gomez did so with gusto.

Diana however wasn't all that thrilled with her minor loss as her smirk was quickly replaced with a scowl. Managing the stiff upper lip, she placed the wine glass back on the table and some how even formed a smile on her face.

"Excuse me I have to check on dinner." Diana replied ruefully as she got up from her seat. Her heels clicking furiously against the tiles.

"I uhm...I'm gonna see if my mom needs help." Dallas stated as following her mother into the kitchen. But not before turning around and giving Selena two very enthusiastic thumbs up. A few seconds after Dallas joined her mother in the kitchen, heated conversation could be heard behind the doors.

Eddie took this as his turn to intervene. "I think I should help with the...I'll be right back." Demi's father nodded politely as he excused himself. Which left Demi, Selena and Madison on the couch by them selves.

"So far so great right Demi?" Selena asked, her voicing hinting at sarcasm as she felt her body relaxing significantly, the absence of Demi's mom putting both girls at ease as Selena felt the blind girl's head lean against Selena's shoulder.

"I'm sorry Selena. I should have warned you. My mom can be a little...what's the right word."

"Scary?" Selena added, a smirk going to her lips. That earned another heartfelt giggle from her fellow 18 year old companion.

"I was gonna say overprotective but, yeah I guess scary could be another definitive word."

Selena's gently hand rested on Demi's fore arm and began to stroke the blind girl's expose skin. She forgot that she was supposed to be the one that was nervous in this situation. "It's OK Demi, I really do understand. Your mom is just looking for you. If I knew someone as amazing as you were, I'd do the same."

Demi's smile widened at Selena compliment. Feeling her heart swell up she snuggled into the Hispanic girl's embrace as a sigh escaped her lips. Knowing that this moment wouldn't last judging how the first half hour of their night was going, Demi tried to take advantage of their time alone as much as she could.

"I just want her to see you the way I see you is all."

Selena looked down at the floor as she leaned her head against the singer's. Letting out an exacerbated breath, she silently agreed with the blind girl next to her, gently nodding her head. Turning her gaze to the youngest girl now in the room, she was met by Madison's bright eyes and vibrant smile.

"Damn girl. You just stood toe to with the beast!"

That one statement caused all three of them to burst out in laughter. It was a small moment of victory, but a moment that was much needed to break the tension that had been building up since Selena entered their home. And maybe just maybe if Demi was by her side, Selena could possibly make it throughout the rest of the dinner.

* * *

"What's there to talk about? I don't trust her." Diana tried to keep her voice together as she opened the oven to check on the roast that was cooking. It would be another twenty minutes before she could even serve the prepared meal. Sighing in frustration she closed the oven door and leaned against the kitchen counter, facing her husband who seemed to be indifferent about the situation.

"Diana..." Her husband began,"You're being ridiculous. You barely know the girl."

"How do you know what kind of person she's like Eddie? For all you know she could be like those girls from Cross Timber. Do you remember them? The so called girls that pretended to be friends with our daughter?" Diana quietly fumed, her eyes livid as she spoke to her husband.

"Besides I just asked her a question was all. She's the one getting defensive about it." Diana replied, closing the oven door to the roast that was cooking in the oven. The eldest daughter just snickered at her mother's denial.

"I dunno mom. You seem to be the one getting all defensive." Dallas snickered, leaning back on the chair she was sitting in. The mother just looked at the blonde daughter, staring daggers into the dancer's face.

"Did I ask for your opinion Dallas?"

"Mom..." Dallas got up from her seat and placed her hands on her hips defiantly as the tone in her voice changed. "How many more people are you going to scare away? If you keep this up, Demi won't have any friends left."

"I'm not going to have my daughter be taken advantaged of like that ever again. She is not going to go through that same heart ache that she went through back in Texas" The mother challenged back, matching Dallas's wits with her own stubbornness, determined to stand her ground against her eldest creation.

The blond dancer just scoffed at her mother's pig headed attitude and turned away. "You keep this and Demi is going to..." She stopped mid way as her eyes caught something at their dining table.

"Mom, there are six of us here tonight. Why is there an extra plate?" Dallas turned towards her mother cautiously pointing to the seventh seating arrangement around the large dining table.

"I uhm, kind of invited a friend?"

Dallas's eyebrow cocked at the subtle hint that her mother was giving her. She had a few guess of who this new mystery guest was. But she only needed one. In a cautious state, she asked the dreaded question. "...Who did you invite?"

Their conversation was interrupted by the sound of their door bell ringing.

* * *

A dreadful feeling started to brew inside the pit of Demi's stomach as she heard the ringing of her door bell. She couldn't understand who would be coming by, at this hour especially when everyone was already pretty much here. Who could possibly come by now?

Her mind was reeling with the possibilities as she felt her way to the front door of their home. She couldn't explain this feeling of dread, but from the debacle of her mother's accusation towards Selena and...well just the conversations she had with her this week, the blind musician didn't have a good feeling about this. Her fears were confirmed as she opened the door.

"Demi, oh my god is that you?" Demi felt a weight crash in her stomach as that familiar voice rang in her ears.

No she didn't. Her mother didn't invite...

* * *

"It's me, Joe! Joe Jonas!" And just like that, Demi's evening took a massive u-turn for the worse. 


	8. Chapter 8

AN: Hey guys. Miss me? Lol. It's been a while hasn't it? Yeah it's been quite some time since I updated. But here I am with another addition to the story. And I probably lost a few viewers, for that I am sorry that I didn't update in so long. Some personal crap got in the way and well...yeah. Real life blows puppy poop right? But I didn't forget about you guys and I just want you to know that I am here. Writing and thinking of all of you :) so hope you enjoy this chapter guys. We are at the halfway point lol.

One can never truly expect the unexpected like most people claim. There are always different variables that you can never take into consideration when planning something out, and if life taught people anything is that, no matter how hard you try to avoid certain scenarios, life just likes to throw you a massive curve ball and smack you on the forehead with it.

With all our per-emptive planning, check listing for possible side scenarios and all the preparations that we take into consideration, there will always be that one little aspect that always creeps up at the last minute. And there's not a damn thing we can do about it. The ants will come to ruin the family picnic, your noisy neighbor will blast screamo music out of his high watt speakers when you're trying to study for a midterm, and no matter how assuring the weather forecast calls for sunny weather, it always seems to rain ruining your good shoes and soaking your new outfit. And just because life likes to toy with people, a car will dip into a near by puddle and completely spraying you with mud.

Oh and lets not your mother forget inviting the person you claimed to be the "worst blind date you ever had" to an important dinner.

Demi didn't see that one coming, nor did she see the hug that came from Joe Jonas when he wrapped his arms around the flinching blind girl.

That familiar feeling of her previous meal rising up to her throat came back to Demi as she felt the salmon salad she had for lunch that after noon rumbling around in her stomach. The last she wanted to happen was to have Joe Jonas wrapping his arms around her body.

The invasive way he pulled her in and inhaled the fragrant scent of her hair, made her skin crawl. And his arms, god the way his arms wrapped around her waist, if she wasn't turned off by his inoffensive, she certainly was now.

"Joe…" Demi feigned with fake enthusiasm as she tried to put on her best fake smile. "You're here, in my house, in front of me. This is…unexpected."

"Of course I am, your mom did invite me after all, telling me how much you enjoyed our last date, guess you couldn't get enough of me huh?"

Demi could feel his slimy signature smirk of his playing over his face. She did her best to suppress the shudder that was running up her spine, but she felt her own body involuntarily flinching at the assumption that she couldn't get enough of him. In fact, the less Joe Jonas she got, the better.

"Did you do something different with yourself? You look great." Joe's compliment was followed by a wolf whistle, which just made the blind feel the need to crawl into a hole.

It was true, she did, dress to impress today with the help of her sister. But it certainly wasn't for Joe Jonas of all people. She suddenly felt the need to wrap her cardigan around her shoulders. It didn't take a sighted person to hear the lust filled thoughts in the middle Jonas brother's voice as well as his eyes linger over her body.

Did this guy just have no tact whatsoever?

"So what's on the grill babe? I'm starving" the invasive young man stated as he walked through the door way without any sort of invitation from the visually impaired brunette. Demi scowled at whatever higher power was controlling her fate.

Whatever she did wrong in a previous life, Karama definitely seemed to be collecting it's due tonight.

Selena knew that she had her work cut out for this evening. There was no question about that. From her already tense experience with Demi's mother Selena pretty much knew that Diane was going to be the hardest one to win over. From her dagger like glares, to her loaded questions, this felt more like an interrogation rather than being invited to a family dinner. 'So much for southern hospitality' Selena said to herself as she poked at the roast in front of her.

On top of that, she had to deal with the fact that Demi's mother made the impromptu decision to invite the middle Jonai brother, who seemed to be boring everyone at the table about his new "Hit" single. See No More, Hear No More...something along the lines of that. All she knew was that if she had to hear one more shameless promo date for his single, she was going to drive her dinner fork into Joe's temple. For real, How could this man eat? He was so full of himself. Even Diane was trying to feign interest into the young man's self centered conversation.

Each word he spoke of, it was See No More this, See No More that. God if Selena never heard the words See, No And More in the same consecutive pattern, it would be too soon. Looking up, she saw the bored expression on Demi's face as she picked at the plate in front of her. And sitting across from her was Madison who seemed to be rolling her eyes at another JoBros story.

"So what about you Dems?' Joe asked shamelessly as she took another bite out of his roast. "Did you like the new single?"

"What?" Demi asked as her head perked from her plate, to be honest, she wasn't even paying attention to Joe half the time. His choice of table conversation topics was pretty much a mirrored scenario of what Demi experienced when he took her out on their date. Granted this time it was actually bearable knowing that Selena and her family was there to endure the one note conversation that was going on. "Oh uh...I.."

"She loved it! We all did" Diane interrupted, taking a sip from her glass tumbler in front of her. "She absolutely raved about it . Didn't you sweet heart?" Diane asked. More like insisted.

"I did?" Demi asked once again, confusion think her voice as her fork idly poked the salad in front of her. "I guess..."

"Oh yeah, she couldn't stop talking about. You know? She kept telling me how wonderful it sounds and how amazing your vocals were. She raved."

Demi just sank in her chair as her cheeks flushed with embarrassment. She hated the fact that her mother was trying to play match maker with someone that she had absolutely no interest in what so ever. And for some odd reason no matter how many times she told her mom that she had no real interest in dating Joe Jonas, her mother for some odd reason felt otherwise.

"Mom what are you doing?" the blind musician harshly whispered to her nosy mother.

"What you like him, talk to him." Her mother encouraged, prodding her daughter's shoulder.

"Stop it, you're embarrassing me!"

The bickering went on back of forth between mother and daughter while Joe just looked on with a bemused look, while popping in another bite from his plate. Selena could only image the embarrassment that the singer was going through. Deciding that Demi had enough embarrassing moments from, dear ole mama DE La Garza, she decided to intervene

"So Joe, " Selena spoke out, mentally cringing at the thought of starting a discussion with the highly overrated singer sitting at their table. But if it meant sparing her blind friend further embarrassment, then so be it. She would even go as far as saying that she liked his Music. Well...maybe. ""Did you know that. Demi's a musician too? You should really hear her play sometimes. She's incredible."

"Really? I didn't know that." Joe turned his attention back to the young Lovato teenager. Only to be interrupted just as she was about to respond.

"Yeah!" Diane again chimed in. "She's quite the musician. Maybe you two would like to get together and do a little collaboration? Hmm?"

If life was a cartoon right now, everyone would be collectively face palming them selves at Diane's suggestions. The entire family could see that Demi had no in interest in Joe Jonas what so ever, why couldn't Diane see that about her own daughter?

"Excuse miss De La Garza?" Selena spoke up. A fake smile was feigned on her face as her eyes stared daggers into Demi's mom. "I'm sure you're very proud of your daughter and you have every right to be, but I think you are making her a little uneasy right now."

"Really..." Diane responded, narrowing her gaze at the scared actress in front of her. "You seem to have a knack for butting into other people's business. First you insult me in front of my family, and then you're telling me how to raise my daughter? Why don't you just take my job and run this family?"

Diane started to raise her voice at the intrusive attitude of the girl in front of her. Insulted at the fact that some teenager was telling her how to be a mother, a mother to a family that she practically fought to keep together was just an insult to her. "You want my husband too while you're at it?"

"I can't believe you!" Selena scoffed at Diane's tone. If this woman was going to push her buttons, then she wasn't beyond playing the same game, despite the fact that this was Demi's mom, she was sick and tired of being stepped on all night. "Can't you see that your making your daughter is uncomfortable right now?"

"She's uncomfortable because of you!"

"No, She's uncomfortable because you're trying to set her up with someone that she has absolutely no interest in! God do you even care about what YOUR daughter thinks? Or are you just to obsessed with controlling her life?"

"Woah now hold up!" The Middle Jonas Brother now stood up facing the two feuding ladies. "Absolutely no interest? Hello, I'm a Jonas Brother?"

"You know what Joe? Nobody give's a crap about you and your stupid Chris Brown wannabe single, so shut up!" Selena angrily screamed, her flaring focusing on the now surprised and baffled Joseph Jonas, who's only response was to quietly sit back down at his seat.

"Nice!" Maddie cheered while putting fist in the air victoriously. It was about time someone put Joe freaking Jonas in his damn place.

"Oh my god..." Demi whispered as she buried her face in her hands. This entire night was turning into one huge disaster. She should have expected this. She knew what kind of person her mother was, she was just praying that there was some hope that her mom would change, and would be more open to her own decisions. But that wasn't the case. It was just wishful thinking. Her mom would always be this control freak who would never even trust her daughter.

Eddie, the ever so level headed one of the family sensed Demi's distraught. Sitting up slowly he tried his best to intervene between the two feuding ladies.

"Hey, why don't we all have some desert. We have a nice Cherry Jubilee in the fridge." He spoke smoothly, trying to release some of the now built up tension. However it was clear that his request was falling on deaf ears.

"How DARE you tell me how to run MY family!" At this point all logic was escaping Diane's mind as her fists clenched. "Who the hell do you think you are to give me advice you bratty ungrateful child! I invite you to my home, introduce you to my family and this is how you want to thank me? By trying to turn my family against me?

"Guys?" Dallas attempted to interrupt the two screaming women by trying to inject herself in the middle."Maybe we shouldn't be SO loud right now? I mean I for one wouldn't want anyone to call the police on us?"

"I'm not TRYING to do anything!" the angry Latina Yelled back ignoring Dallas's comment, her death like glare remaining on Demi's mom "You're doing a bang up job of doing that all by yourself with your...self controlling, micro managing attitude!"

"Well at least I didn't kill anyone!" Diane shouted out, the sheer tenacity in her voice was dripping with malice and disdain as the entire table went silent at her mother's accusation. It was the type of silence that went beyond general awkwardness. This was an out right attack on someone. A vicious out of line unnecessary attack on someone that Diane decided to launch in sheer anger towards the now pale faced teenager.

Everyone's attention was now at the dinner table as they stared in shock at the hostess's words. Even Edward, got up and ushered the youngest child (who had a look of horror on her face of her mother's words,) out of the room.

"I..." Selena's face paled at Diane's words. She wouldn't. Would she? She wouldn't do this just to push her away from daughter. No, no one can be that cruel. No matter what their intentions were.

"Oh I know all about you Selena, How you got those scars, how you got your friend killed in the same accident because you were too doped up on Heroin? How they found over a gram of cocaine in your glove compartment?"

Seeing the effects her words had on the scared actress knew that she had struck a sensitive nerve in the taller Latina girl. With the assumption in her mind that she was doing the right thing, she continued with her verbal assault. "I read the news articles about you. Do you honestly think I would want my daughter to associate them selves with a killer?"

For the first time in Demi's life, she was actually glad that she was blind. Because right now, at this very moment, she didn't think she could ever look at her mother in the eyes after this. Spending so much time trying to get to know the girl next to her, she could feel all her efforts crumbling in front of her, just like the strong, unbroken, respectable image she once had of her mother.

A disgruntled and bitter scoff just came from Selena's lips as she looked away from the older woman's piercing gaze. If her mission was to humiliate and break her down in front of Demi and her family, she succeeded. Selena Gomez couldn't feel any more broken than she is right now.

"Well..." A broken voiced stated, the obvious cracks in her tone standing out.

"it was certainly nice meeting you all of you...well most of you at least...Thanks for inviting me Demi. This was just a real great idea." Selena spoke with such callous sarcasm, the tears building up causing her voice to crack ever so slightly.

"Selena, wait!" Demi called out as as quickly as she could, following her friend to the door, she desperately tried to get the taller girl to listen to her plea. Turning around, she could feel Selena's trembling figure in front of her.

"I didn't...mean for this to happen. I just wanted my family to get to know you please...you have to believe me" Demi pleaded as she tried to convince the Latina that her actions were genuine.

But what could she say. There wasn't much she could do. An apology would be meaningless since she technically did nothing wrong. She wasn't the one who belittled and humiliated the girl in front of her. She had her own mom to thank for that. She was hoping for the best. For some kind of a chance that things between would remain the same.

Grabbing Selena's in her own, she tried once again to reassure her fellow companion that things between them wouldn't change. It was a fools hope that she had right now. A false sense of hope that things between them wouldn't change. That their dynamic would remain in tact and their friendship untarnished. Yet the logical side told her otherwise. There was no way things could stay the same after this night. And Selena's confirmation didn't make things better.

"I'll see you around Demi..." Was all Selena said as she quietly opened the door, leaving the distraught blind girl behind.

* * *

Long after the two guests have left, Dallas still sat at the dinner table watching her mother pace back and forth, her anger stewing each time she breezed from the left to the right. Her mother was a Micromanagement conisure. It was no secret that she was the central nervous system of the family. And she always had the best intentions, and the best goals for her family. Diane wasn't someone who didn't do something unless she had good reason for it.

But like they say, the road to hell is often paved with best intentions. And right now she could imagine, what her relationship will be like with her 18 year old counterpart right now. She's seen a lot from her mom, but this time she went way off the grid in terms of going to far.

"Unbelievable, that girl she's...unbelievable! Can you believe her?" Diane yelled as she angrily paced back and forth in the dining room area. Still fuming from the argument she had with Selena, her anger continued to bubble from her like an erupting fountain of lava. With each step she took, her maliciousness seemed to spew out from every word she spoke.

All Dallas could do was just witness her mother's mental break down from afar.

"The nerve of her! She just sat and had the audacity to tell me how to care for my own family? Me, of all people! She thinks she can come her, and poison me with her bull crap? Oh she has another thing coming. I swear to god, I am not done with. If I ever...EVER, see her again..."

"Mom!" The eldest sister finally erupted, standing right in front of her rage ridden mother. "Do you have any idea what you've done, how Demi's going to feel that you drove away her only friend? God what...what the hell is wrong with you?"

"Dal, Demi can do better than that girl. She can..."

As Diane was interrupted, she looked up to see her daughter walking back into the living room, looking worse for wear. Her arms were crossing her chest as small sobs were escaping her lips, tear streaks were pouring out from the corner of her glasses as she shook with anger.

"Oh Demi..." Diane tried to go to her daughter's side in an attempt to comfort her, only to have her efforts thwarted by Demi violently flinching at her mother's touch. To say that Diane was shocked at her daughter's reaction was an understatement. She thought that nothing in this world could ever break the bond she had with her children. She always thought that a mother's relationship was something that could withstand anything that was thrown at them.

However seeing the obvious traces of betrayal on her daughter's pain ridden face was enough to tell her that this was worse than the occasional mother, daughter arguments that every mom has with their child. This was worse, she had rarely seen this look on her child's face. And when she had, she was never the cause of this tormented facial expression.

"Don't..." the singer seethed angrily Her voice dripping with betrayal and disdain as she shook with anger.

"Oh sweet heart. You can do better than that girl. Don't you see what she's trying to do? She's using..." she tried to plea with her daughter once again, only to be met with the same reaction.

"I hate you." Came the younger child's response as she began to inch away from her mother. "I hate you so much right now." in the back of Demi's mind, she knew that she was talking irrationally. There was no way that she could hate her mother. But right now she was just so god damn angry at her for what she did that she couldn't speak rationally right now. So she said the only thing that came to her mind.

"What?" Diane was horrified at the choice words of her daughter. Did she really hear what she thought she did? Did demi really hate her own mother? No she couldn't have said that. There was no way that Demi, her own flesh and blood would say something like that. Not to her. Not after the relationship she built with her own child. There was no way that she heard her daughter say something so hateful towards her. No, she had to get through to her child.

"Demi, she's trying to hurt you, she trying to to use you like those girls did back at Cross..."

"You're the one that hurts me!" The blind girl shouted, hot tears now streaming down her face as all of her emotional turmoil bubbled out an control as she aimed all of her pain and anger to her very own mother.

"It's always you, It's always been you! God, I don't even feel like I'm your daughter sometimes. No matter how bad anyone has treated me in the past, it's always you that hurts me the most!"

Her words viciously cut through Diane's heart as she stood there with her hands being brought to her mouth. She couldn't believe the words that were coming from her daughter right now. Demi, her Demitria was a kind girl. A girl that would never say anything vicious or hurtful to anyone. A girl who was thankful and kind and always treated her family with love.

The girl in front of her right now wasn't her daughter. This was a pained woman who was lashing out at her with words that her daughter would never use towards her own mom.

"Demi...why are you saying things like..."

"Why don't you just lock me in my room 24/7! It's obvious you don't want me to have a life outside of this house. I don't even feel like your daughter anymore! I feel like I'm your fucking prisoner! " Demi yelled once more before slouching against the wooden wall of the dining room. She crumbled to the floor as she buried her face into her own hands, letting her sobs rack through her body.

Dallas being the older sister she was felt her younger sibling's pain as she scooped the sobbing 18 year old girl in her arms. Feeling her sister's tears soaking her collar, she just let the younger one cry into her shoulder. Casting a worried looking to her mother, she caught a glance at her shame ridden face.

The almost emphasis in Demi's voice coupled along with the brutal and cruel words her daughter used just sounded so foreign to the older mother figure. She could feel her own heart breaking at Demi's words as they replayed over in her mind. She...hated her. Her Demi, the one she hugged and cared for ever since she was a little girl...hated her. Placing her hands over her own heart, she could feel the pain from her words seeping into her chest. As she slowly dragged her feet away from her two girls, the numbing pain inside her chest continued to worsen.

Diane found herself feeling something she thought she would never feel in a million years. Clueless. Absolutely and positively clueless in how she was going to fix things between her and her daughter.


End file.
